Trial by Fire
by sakurademonalchemist
Summary: He was so done with this nonsense. However fate, it seemed, was not done with him. Reborn as Portagas D. Ace, lost son of the Pirate King himself, he is determined to live life HIS way for a change. Especially if it means protecting his loved ones properly this time, like his baby brother Luffy. The World Government has no idea who they're messing with.
1. Chapter 1

**Instead of the "Ace-is-Harry" route, this is more "Harry-became-Ace and is so done with this nonsense". Also, happy (early) Fourth of July everyone!  
**

* * *

Shanks was teasing Luffy the day it happened. Luffy suddenly looked up and turned towards the door.

"Ace!" he cheered.

Shanks turned...and came almost face to face with a mini Roger, only with some of Rouge's features and a scowl on his face.

"Who's this Luffy?" asked Shanks cheerfully. However there was something _ancient_ in the older child's eyes.

Almost like staring down a dragon version of Whitebeard when he was in a protective mood in the form of a child a little older than Luffy, with Roger's features.

The second the boy's eyes landed on Luffy, unharmed and acting like a kid should, that ancient gaze softened.

It was clear that the mini-dragon had already claimed the kid as it's own and would protect it with every fiber in their being if something happened to the kid.

Something in Shanks relaxed slightly. He didn't know what caused a child to have such an ancient gaze behind those silver eyes, but he had the distinct feeling that as long as he meant no harm to Luffy or those the kid cared about (like Makino), the dragon would ignore his presence in his territory.

"Shishishi...this is my big brother Ace!" said Luffy. "He's super strong and really smart!"

"Your brother huh? How come I've never seen him before?"

"Shishishi...Ace likes to hunt a lot and always brings me a lot of meat! He said I'm almost big enough to join him!" said Luffy proudly.

Seeing the look on Shanks face, Ace finally spoke.

"It's either I train him, or I let Shitty Gramps get his claws into him."

"Shitty Gramps?" said Shanks amused.

Ace nodded to Luffy.

"His full name is Monkey D. Luffy...do I really need to elaborate on who his grandfather is?" deadpanned Ace. "Oi Makino! Do you have any orange juice?"

Makino sighed in exasperation...at least Ace was trying to be polite. Mostly.

She set a massive cup down and filled it with orange juice.

Shanks and his crew watched with open amusement as Ace chugged the drink down like a pro.

Luffy grinned.

"I challenge you to a drinking contest!"

"One, we're not old enough that Makino would let us even touch her booze supply...if these idiots haven't drank it all yet," said Ace dryly. Shanks held up his booze in amusement, silently acknowledging the fact they _had_ pretty much wiped out Makino's current stock. "Two, you still haven't managed to figure out the trick to being able to breath while chugging any sort of liquid down."

Shanks snorted.

"You didn't tell me your older brother was smarter than you, Anchor."

Luffy pouted, but Shanks ruffled his hair and brought his mood back up. Shanks teased the brat when he asked for juice like his big brother.

"See? You're not old enough to join my crew. All real men drink booze," said Shanks grinning.

"Please, the only reason anyone would drink watered down booze is to avoid getting sick," said Ace.

"Oh?" said Benn.

"Alcohol's chemical composition makes it a natural sterilizing agent and makes water safe enough to drink. It's safer to drink watered down booze on unfamiliar islands, especially in places where there are known super bugs that make people sick," said Ace. "That's why it's not uncommon to use booze to clean out a wound, because it kills the bacteria and most contaminates to prevent infection...even if it hurts like a bitch."

Ace noticed that the ship's doctor looked at him with open approval for knowing that fact.

"Of course the fact it pissed off Shitty Gramps when I stole some of his best stock so I could treat all the injuries that asshole keeps giving me in the name of training didn't hurt either."

"...You stole your grandfather's booze?" said Shanks.

Ace smirked wickedly. He reached behind him, and no one could see _how_ he did it, but he pulled out a very expensive and hard to find bottle of whiskey.

Shanks stared.

"That's fifty-year-old whiskey, and it costs a fortune to find," he said in shock.

"Shitty Gramps was stupid enough to leave me alone with his filing cabinet. He didn't realize it was missing until _after_ he got done putting his files back in order after he busted me reading them, and by then I wasn't even on the ship anymore," said Ace cheekily.

Shanks started laughing and he wasn't the only one.

"You're not even ten yet!" scolded Makino.

"Hey, at least I'm saving this for when I'll be old enough to appreciate it!" Ace shot back. Shanks laughed even harder at that.

This kid was a riot.

It was pretty clear Ace was meant to be a pirate. Whatever was behind that ancient gaze he had upon entering disappeared for the most part once he deemed Shanks "not a threat" to Luffy.

Finding out Luffy was Garp's grandson shouldn't have been surprising, but it was to an extent.

Shanks put the matter out of mind...right up until Luffy challenged the local bandit gang because they were talking bad about the Red Haired Pirates while Ace was out of town for the day.

The port was quiet...too quiet considering Luffy made a point to come running the _second_ he heard Shanks was coming back.

Then he noticed the commotion in the square, and realized Luffy was at the center of it. It looked like the bandits had come back with intent to cause mischief and would need to be dealt with.

It took him all of five seconds to register what he thought at first was Conqueror's Haki...until he realized with absolute shock that it was killing intent. Pure, unfiltered killing intent and it was being generated by the little dragon known as Ace.

"What...do you think you're doing to my little brother?"

Ace didn't shout...he had little need to considering the dead silence that descended once his killing intent was felt.

The bandit sneered and tried to pretend he wasn't intimidated by the brat leveling enough intent to kill that it made a few of his men either pass out or straight up piss themselves in fear of having that gaze turned on them.

"The little shit was going on about how those pathetic pirates are actually worth something. I'm just teaching him his place."

Shanks got there in time to see Ace crick his neck...as something settled in his gaze. He did _not_ like the look in Ace's eyes at all.

The dragon comparison was impossible to get rid of now...and you could imagine his shock seeing Ace take out a gun from _somewhere_ and shoot the bandit pinning Luffy to the ground in the knee with terrifying accuracy, causing him to howl with pain. Luffy immediately bolted to hide behind Ace, completely unaffected by the tension in the air.

"You little shit!"

"What's the matter? I was merely teaching you your place in the pecking order," said Ace coldly and calmly. "No one threatens one of _mine_ like that and gets away with a mere slap on the wrist. Especially someone stupid enough to target a kid."

Shanks knew they had better intervene fast, before Ace killed anyone. It was pretty clear that the bandits were beyond rattled at how calmly Ace had shot their leader without even hesitating, never mind the killing intent still in the air.

No one that young should have the ability to kill another person without a second thought like that.

Seeing Shanks, the intent lessened enough that they could work with ease. Apparently Ace decided Shanks' presence was enough to carry Luffy off to Makino's bar and fuss over the kid.

"Where did you get the gun?" asked Shanks, once it was over.

"Filched it off Gramps' ship," said Ace promptly. "Not my fault those idiot marines drop their guard around five year olds and didn't think to lock up the armory."

"...Why do I get the distinct feeling if I asked where you got something, you'll just say you stole it from Garp's ship?" asked Shanks.

"Because you're not a complete idiot?" said Ace, tilting his head. He bopped Luffy on the head for moving. "And sit still you brat! If you had waited for me to come back you wouldn't have been caught in the first place!"

"They were saying bad things about Shanks!" defended Luffy.

"And it never occurred to you to wait for back-up, you idiot?!" scolded Ace.

Luffy pouted.

"You sound like an old man!" said Luffy. Ace hit him harder this time.

"You do sound like an old man," said Shanks amused.

Ace turned to look at him with a deadpan expression.

"If _anyone_ is an old man here, it's Shanks. I can see gray hairs where I'm sitting. Not to mention crow's feet."

Shanks sputtered.

"I'm not even thirty!"

"Could have fooled me. Then again your flirting with Makino was absolutely terrible and outdated," said Ace. "Was that why you became a pirate? To recapture your lost youth?"

"You little brat!"

Ace was on a roll, and all too happy to make pot-shots at Shanks about his age.

"After all, I'm not even ten which automatically makes you an old geezer. Isn't that right Luffy?"

Shanks looked at Luffy, hoping for some help. Sadly Luffy decided to be a complete ego crusher instead.

"You mean Shanks isn't forty?"

It was then that Shanks registered the fact his crew was _howling_. Especially Benn.

"You guys are mean," said Shanks, pouting like a child.

Ace smirked like the little devil he was.

Luffy patted Shanks' hand.

"It's okay Papa Shanks...we'll still love you even when you're too old to be a proper pirate anymore," said Luffy.

It took Shanks a few seconds to register what Luffy called him, but when he did he almost crushed the kid with a hug. The brat was just too cute...even if he was a total ego crusher.

* * *

Dying might have sucked, but being given a second chance at life wasn't too bad. He even got a bratty little brother out of the deal.

The man formerly known as "Harry Potter, the Man Who Survives" (among many other ridiculous titles), now Portagas D. Ace watched Shanks leaving the island with fondness.

It was clear he had left a permanent impression on Luffy and that there was no way in hell Garp was ever turning the kid into a marine.

The winds of freedom had caught Luffy up and he was determined to find his "Papa Shanks" again.

Ace grinned...tormenting the red head was a hoot, and they still couldn't figure out how he kept bringing stuff that was far too big for his pockets to fit out.

It wasn't like any of them knew what magic was, much less a 'dimensional pocket'. It had come as a pleasant shock finding out that he could still use all his spells and tricks, even if he had to build up his core all over again.

He wasn't at the level where he could transform into his animagus form, but he was half-way there. He just had to wait and see if Luffy had the ability as well...the kid would probably enjoy Ace's training a hell of a lot more than he ever would Garp's.

"Ace, Ace! Look! Shanks gave me his hat!" said Luffy, though there were tears in his eyes.

Somehow, Ace had the feeling Shanks was feeling just as unhappy leaving Luffy behind as Luffy was to see him go.

Which was why Ace was going to give Shanks a well deserved and welcome shock.

* * *

_Later that week..._

Luffy looked at the tiny snail with fascination.

"_Who is this?"_ asked Shanks suspiciously.

"Shanks!" said Luffy, happily. The snail gaped in shock.

"_Luffy?!"_

"You're a dumbass. You live on the Grand Line and it _never_ occurred to leave Luffy a Den Den Mushi and your number to stay in contact?" deadpanned Ace.

Shanks narrowed his eyes at the other boy_._

"_How do you have this number?"_

"I asked your wife," said Ace.

"_I don't have a wife."_

"By wife I meant your first mate Benn. He sure as hell nagged you enough to be mistaken for your wife," Ace shot back.

"_...I'm almost tempted to laugh my ass off once Benn finds out what you called him," _said Shanks seriously.

Ace smirked.

"Have fun catching up with Luffy. I plan on leaving him this particular snail so you two don't miss each other _too_ much once he goes off on his own adventure," said Ace.

Luffy looked beyond thrilled hearing Shanks voice. It wasn't as good as seeing him, but at least this way he could not only keep his promise but still stay in contact with one of his favorite people.

Ace was seriously the most awesome older brother _ever_. He not only told _the_ best stories, but he was super smart, strong, courageous, caring and he didn't mind it when Luffy hung around him when he could be training.

Which was why he had absolutely no problem telling Shanks that when it came to his favorite people, Ace came ahead as his number one favorite. Much to his mock outrage.

* * *

The first time Ace met Sabo, a strange sort of understanding filled him.

He knew on sight the kid didn't belong in the garbage heap, and there was no way he was properly equipped to deal with street living. His eyes didn't have the right hardness for one thing.

"I need a minion capable of holding an intelligent conversation and willing to help me keep my idiot little brother from getting in over his head until he's strong enough to stay alive without me keeping an eye on him. You interested?" he asked.

"What makes you think I care?" asked the blond.

"Do you want three meals a day, an actual roof over your head and the guarantee the jackass nobles will never be able to recognize you?" said Ace.

The other boy tensed when he mentioned the nobles.

"Why should I care what the nobs think?"

Ace gave him a flat look.

"You don't have the right callouses and your features are too pretty for you to be anything but one of the nob's kids that ran away. I don't care why you left, so long as you never betray me or mine," said Ace bluntly. "So are you interested or not?"

"Why do you even care what happens to me?"

"Because out of all the other kids here, you look like you need the most help. Besides, someone has to help me teach that idiot brother of mine how to read. Any kid from the higher society would know that much."

Now he saw actual interest.

"Just so we're clear, do I have any guarantee you won't turn me in to the nobles later?"

"Fuck them and fuck the marines. The worst you'll likely have to deal with by associating with me if having to deal with Shitty Gramps idea of training. I doubt my brother will even realize the obvious and if Gramps doesn't rat you out I sure as hell won't. I _protect_ my own," said Ace flatly.

Sabo looked at him in the eyes...and saw no deceit there. Ace genuinely did not give a damn he was a noble's son or why he ran away.

After only a few moments hesitation, he followed Ace out of that trash heap.

He would never regret that decision.


	2. Chapter 2

"Sabo...what the actually hell were you thinking, cutting across the ship like that?" asked Ace in a low tone.

Sabo winced...Ace only took that particular tone whenever one of them monumentally screwed up. Like the time Luffy tried to take on one of the bigger animals on the island to prove how tough he was and nearly got himself killed. Or the time he had left Luffy with the Dadan bandits only to find out they hadn't bothered to keep an eye on the kid at all and he ended up on a ledge in a ravine.

It had taken them four hours to get Luffy free, and the poor kid was hypothermic on top of starving and almost had a really nasty infection set in.

Ace had made Garp back down on their 'training' until Luffy had properly recovered from the ordeal...shockingly enough the insane Marine admiral backed off.

Sabo had never really questioned where Ace got his medical knowledge...all he knew was that right now, he was _very_ glad the 'eldest' of their trio knew so much about healing.

Ace stared Sabo down. He had trouble matching the ravenette's gaze...it felt as though he had disappointed someone important.

"The nobles here are complete assholes...you know this better than I do. So what in god's name were you thinking, cutting across the Celestial Dragon's ship like that? Common sense alone should have told you what a horrible idea that was, especially since all the ships were docked the day before to avoid upsetting them by having to share the sea with 'commoners'!" scolded Ace.

"My father almost recognized me! What else was I supposed to do?!"

"Trust in the charms I set on you to keep you safe!" said Ace. "For god's sake if you had _waited_ we could have faked your death or something! _We almost lost you!_"

Sabo flinched.

"You're not going to abandon me, are you?"

Ace gave him a flat stare.

"I just spent _five hours_ stabilizing you and doing my best to minimalize the scar tissue you'll have once those bandages came off. Do you really think I would risk exposure to those assholes who almost killed you when I flew out to save your sorry ass or spent so much time healing you just to throw you out?" snarked Ace.

Sabo winced...then stared.

"Wait...flew?"

Ace rolled his eyes.

"If you swear that you won't do something so recklessly stupid again without considering us first, I'll show you something I've been holding back until Luffy is older," said Ace. "You have no idea what a pain it was to skim the waves and stay low enough while going that fast just to get to you in time."

It took two and a half months, but once Ace deemed Sabo 'healed enough', the grumpy preteen took out...

"Are those _brooms_?" said Sabo incredulous.

"Yes, now shut up," said Ace.

Luffy was practically vibrating in anticipation.

"Ace, are you going to teach us how to fly?"

"Why yes Luffy, I am."

"With a broom," deadpanned Sabo.

Ace smirked. He put his right hand over the broom on the ground and said with a calm, but firm voice "Up".

To Sabo's eternal shock and disbelief, the broom bounced up into his hand like an eager puppy._ Without any strings attached or movement from Ace_.

Seeing Ace calmly get astride the broom, he kicked off with a whoop and started to zoom around like an idiot. It was honestly the first time Sabo had seen his older brother actually act anywhere close to his physical age.

"Ace, Ace, Ace! Can I try too?" said Luffy, eyes gleaming.

Ace produced two more brooms.

"Okay, here's how these work..." said Ace grinning.

By the time night fell, Sabo was at least semi-competent at flying. Whereas Luffy took to it like a duck to water and was soon trying to beat Ace in stupid stunts.

For the first time since the incident, Sabo was able to sleep without any nightmares. Not that he had many, since Ace had _zero_ issue with letting his brother use him as a teddy bear against their bad dreams.

* * *

Sabo decided to leave with Ace, after they had one last 'run' on Garp's ship for supplies.

Up to and including the extra-special booze stash of the officers, half the food stashed in the galley (the ship's cooks loved the fact all three boys were virtual black holes, as it put their skills to a real test), several new books that had caught their interest, a few Den Den Mushi, an odd compass that fit the description of a log pose, two pairs of Sea Stone cuffs, and of course Garp's personal Den Den Mushi number for prank calls later.

Ace was the undisputed Master Thief/doctor of their little trio and the envy of his younger brothers. Luffy would consider it an _accomplishment_ to be half as awesome as Ace before he became Pirate King.

Which was why he was _very_ surprised when Ace decided to kidnap him, rather than leave him behind.

"We're seriously taking him with us?"

"Let's face it, a little extra experience on a pirate crew won't hurt him and at least this way we know he won't let his fighting skills stagnate. Besides, I am _not_ leaving him to deal with Shitty Gramps all on his own once the old man figures out it was us who raided his booze stash again."

Sabo shivered.

"Point."

"Not to mention this way Luffy will start off with a _real_ ship rather than the small boat the mayor offered him once he turned seventeen. And don't get me started on the pout!" said Ace shiftily.

Sabo snorted.

"You're just as unhappy about leaving your 'baby' behind as Luffy is to see us leave him," said Sabo flatly.

"Shut up!"

"I swear you're such a tsundere."

"...I regret letting you borrow my manga collection," said Ace, mock-glaring at him.

Seriously, Sabo just _had_ to draw parallels between "Rin Tohsaka" and Ace. And Ace was stupid enough to comment about the fact the girl's behavior was typical of a 'tsundere' or 'hard outside, soft inside' personality.

Ace acted like a gruff smart ass, but in reality he was a total mother hen once he claimed you. It was hilarious and slightly adorable, in Sabo's opinion.

Luffy...was just happy his big brothers weren't leaving him behind and that Ace had already worked out the issue of what to do if they ran into Shanks before he turned seventeen and was sent off on his own.

Any possible meeting _did not count_ until Luffy was seventeen and had a bounty of at _least_ a hundred million berri.

(Shanks, amusingly enough, had agreed on that point when Luffy called later that night to explain his big brothers were kidnapping him.)

* * *

_A few months later..._

"No."

"Come on Ace, where's the harm?" said Sabo.

"I don't see the point of this!" complained Ace.

"Please, Ace-nii?" said Luffy, his brown eyes wide and pleading. Ace quickly looked away...Luffy was too damn skilled at the puppy-dog pout for his own good.

"Why should I bother going through the hassle of disguising myself just to infiltrate a Marine base? It's not like they have anything worth stealing!"

Sabo sighed.

"It's not about stealing, you idiot."

Ace blinked.

"Then why are you so set about me going to this island?"

Sabo pinched the bridge of his nose. Ace could be so dense sometimes.

It really bothered him that Ace was always so quick to dismiss his own accomplishments and never bragged about himself properly. Anyone else would have been showing off their skill at cooking, fishing, or their knowledge of medicine, but Ace did everything in his power to _downplay_ his skills like they weren't worth talking about in the first place. And yet he was always the first to praise others.

It was like their idiot narcoleptic older brother had no idea how to take a compliment or praise from others.

Which was why Sabo had hunted down a marine base in the Grand Line that allowed random people to walk in, take an exam and earn an accredited certificate that proved the examinee actually knew how to fix people up to the point they could legitimately call themselves a Doctor.

It was a system set up because it was nearly impossible to centralize any decent medical school, and to fast-track people who picked up on how to be doctors the old fashioned way through training but had limited ability to get around. So long as you had the money and the actual skill, you could legally become a doctor.

Ace was way too skilled not to at least _try_ the exam, and this might keep Garp from trying to kill them with his Fist of Love once he finally managed to catch up to them.

Mostly because he would be too busy bragging about his grandson earning a doctor's license at only seventeen. Pirate or not, that was one of the few things he _could_ brag about to others.

"Look, if you humor me about this one little thing I will babysit Luffy for the next three islands," said Sabo, deftly ignoring Luffy's protests that "he didn't need a babysitter!"

Ace narrowed his eyes at Sabo.

"Five."

"Three," said Sabo firmly.

"Three, and you have to do the dishes for the next month."

"Deal," said Sabo.

Ace sighed.

"Fine, I guess we can swing by this marine base."

He really didn't see the point of it all, but he would do it since Sabo was clearly determined to make Ace go there for some reason.

He would deny doing a spit-take when he heard someone ask if he was there to take the 'licensing exam' for medical practicioners.

Ace swore vengeance into being suckered into this, but at least there wasn't any automatic obligation to serve the marines and he didn't want to waste the five hours he spent on his disguise.

It wasn't even that good of a disguise, it was just that the foundation he used to cover up his distinctive freckles was such a pain in the ass to apply while keeping it from looking too obvious!

Sometimes simple worked best, as he knew very well.

He tied his hair back into a simple ponytail that made him look clean-shaven and serious, put on a pair of fake glasses, covered up his freckles with make-up and wore some fancy, but not expensive clothing that made it appear as if he came from a well-to-do family rather than a pirate ship.

Sabo had been dubious as to whether the disguise would even work, and had almost choked when he heard the name Ace was going to use on the license.

"P. D. Ace? Is this some sort of joke kid?" demanded the marine.

Ace gave off a put-upon sigh.

"My last name is somewhat embarrassing and you have no idea how many people get the wrong impression when they hear it," he explained.

The marine didn't look convinced.

"My name is Pyrite D. Ace."

"Pirate?"

"No, _Pyrite. _P-y-r-i-t-e," spelled Ace. "Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to be attacked because your name sounds like the shortened version for the word privateer?"

"...Fair enough."

Actually the name pun wasn't an accident at all. Ace just thought it would be funny to get a doctor's license with a name that could be linked far too easily to a pirate...and not just because it sounded like the word.

After all, very few people in this world would know that "pyrite" was also known as "fool's gold".

Almost ten hours later, Ace was exhausted and ready for a long nap. He still didn't know how he did on the exam.

So you could imagine his brief alarm when the marines came to his door...and lead him to a second exam where he spent the next _twelve hours_ doing practicals.

Sabo felt more than a little vindicated when Ace somehow managed to earn several different degrees that basically boiled down to making him a licensed "Surgeon/Doctor/Veterinarian". Apparently the Marines were _very_ impressed, despite his 'unfortunate' name.

(Harry Potter, in his previous life, found that obtaining doctorates and spending his fortune learning more about medicine, potions and healing in general a great way to derail Molly Weasley's attempts to match him up with her daughter and the Ministry from trying to put him in the position of an Auror. It also had the very pleasant side effect of shutting Hermione up, since she could hardly complain about him getting an _education_. The fact his pocket dimension still carried his books, travel trunks and everything else he collected but was too lazy to store normally was just a bonus.)

Garp would not stop crowing about it when Sabo sent him the letter, with copies of the license and his new ID included. Even if the Marines had absolutely no clue "Pyrite D. Ace" was actually Portagas D. Ace under a psuedonym and were highly confused why Garp was so proud about a random doctor.

Ace still didn't get why Sabo insisted they visit this particular marine base just so he could get a license. Or why his brothers looked so smug that he walked out with _three_ of them and several referrals if Ace decided to join the Marines to act as one of their top doctors.


	3. Chapter 3

Sabo was half-awake, though once he processed what he was looking at he was coaxed into full alertness.

"Who are you two?"

"I'm Coral," said the girl.

"Finn," said the boy.

"Your captian arbitrarily kidnapped us this morning," said Coral.

Sabo eyed the two obvious fishmen. Then he sighed and took out a clipboard from out of nowhere.

"Orphans?" he asked.

Coral nodded.

"I'm guessing from your appearance the people on your island were less than happy having a pair of fishman siblings present," said Sabo.

Finn nodded warily.

"And some idiot used the word 'freak' in a derogatory manner while describing you in full view of Ace, who took offense and decided that if the islanders weren't going to acknowledge your potential, he'd simply kidnap you and take you to someplace that does," guessed Sabo.

The both nodded, blinking in surprise.

"He does this often?" asked Coral in surprise.

"I don't know what Ace's history is with being called a freak, but whenever he sees something like this he refuses to sit back and do nothing. You're not the first people he's arbitrarily kidnapped without explanation, and I sincerely doubt you'll be the last. Oddly enough word has started getting around the fishmen community that there's a doctor willing to help relocate orphans that live above ground to other islands without asking payment," said Sabo.

After the fifth time he did it, it became clear that word had spread about Ace's...habit. Apparently the fact he honestly did not give a damn about whether you were a fishman, a human or a mermaid seemed to impress them a little. Sabo would not be surprised in the least if word spread to the point that if an orphan saw the flag of the Spade pirates, that they would be packed up before they made port.

At the very least they could probably get away with pretending to be a merchant vessel or something if they took on enough people. After all, the Marines were still having trouble equating "Pyrite D. Ace" with "Portagas D. Ace", regardless of how proud Garp was that his oldest grandson had become a legitimate doctor.

(Sabo had openly laughed when Ace explained what pyrite was and the obvious name pun. The fact the marines hadn't noticed was pretty damn hilarious.)

"I don't get it...what purpose does it serve to kidnap us and take us somewhere better?" asked Coral.

"There is no purpose, beyond the fact Ace hates standing by and watching abuse happen when he has the power to do something about it. He doesn't care if it's legal or not, if he has the ability to help he will," said Sabo. "At most he'll ask that you do the chores while you're on the ship until we reach an island that won't judge you based on your heritage."

Finn wilted.

"And here I was hoping to meet the infamous Doctor Pyrite."

Sabo's lips twitched.

"Doctor Pyrite?"

Finn looked rather animated.

"He's supposed to be some legendary super genius that walked into the exams and came out with three licenses all on the same week. They say he knows how to heal anyone, regardless of their heritage and doesn't give a damn if you're human or a fishman."

"You're a fanboy of his?" asked Sabo, trying desperately not to laugh.

"Finn wants to be a surgeon, but no one wants to train a fishman," said Coral.

Ace yawned as he walked in, and Sabo smirked at his brother/captain.

"Hey Ace~... Guess who has a fanboy?"

Ace stumbled and cursed.

"What are you talking about?" he demanded.

Fans were a nightmare, and Sabo found it absolutely hilarious how paranoid Ace was about them.

Then again the blond never had to run like hell away from a fangirl horde.

"Finn here has apparently heard of 'Doctor Pyrite' and wants to meet him."

Finn and Coral looked absolutely confused. Ace scowled.

"I will get you back for tricking me into those exams," he swore.

Sabo cackled.

"I'm confused," said Coral.

"Do you know what Doctor Pyrite's full name is?" asked Sabo.

"Pyrite D Ace. He wears glasses, proper clothes, and looks younger than he is," said Finn immediately.

Ace made the groan of the damned...then he pulled out a pair of glasses and pulled his hair back.

Finn stared in shock.

"No way."

"See this is part of the reason why I put on that disguise when I took those exams!" said Ace exasperated.

"_You're_ Doctor Pyrite?!" said Finn excitedly.

"I was feeling rather punny the day I walked into the base to take the exams. Not like the Marines noticed," said Ace.

"I don't get it," said Coral.

"Pyrite sounds almost like 'pirate', and it's other name is Fool's Gold. I still don't get how so many people know about my pseudonym when I only used it once," said Ace. "Besides only an idiot would waltz into a well-staffed Marine base to take an exam when they have an active bounty on them without wearing a disguise first."

"Most people don't walk out with the license to three different doctorates after only staying a week."

Ace snorted.

"It was actually four, but I already had one as a surgeon so they didn't bother to give me the dentistry one."

"...I seriously question where you learned all this stuff, when there was hardly any books available on our island," said Sabo.

Ace had the feeling Sabo would believe him if he said it was from his past life at this point. But he liked driving his brother up the wall too much to say anything.

Ace turned to an excited Finn.

"So, surgeon? Any particular field of surgery or just general?"

Finn and Coral blinked.

"There's different types of surgery?" said Coral.

"There's several different kinds. Cosmetic surgery, field surgery, dental surgery, trauma surgery, brain surgery..." listed Ace.

"What's cosmetic surgery?" asked Finn.

"Basically it's remodeling what the body looks like, usually because someone is being extra vain or to fix scarring and battle damage," said Ace promptly. "Mostly vanity though, like making a nose smaller or someone's bust bigger."

Finn was absolutely positive that Ace was Doctor Pyrite now.

"Can you teach me?" he asked hopefully.

"Depends on what you want to learn," said Ace. "Like I said, if you want to be a specialist I will teach you as much as I can."

Finn looked like Christmas come early.

"Why?" asked Coral.

"Knowledge like how to save lives shouldn't be hoarded, but spread to anyone willing to learn. At the very least I'm going to get you both up to speed on how to use CPR. Even my idiot little brother Luffy can do it reliably."

It surprised Ace how few people knew how to perform CPR in this world, when it was predominantly covered by water. It had taken Luffy a month to learn how to do it reliably.

Ace was still trying to drum in basic first aid and medical knowledge so Luffy could keep his crew alive on islands without medical care. At least until he got a proper doctor.

_Later that night..._

Ace turned to Sabo with annoyance.

"Any particular reason why the name 'Doctor Pyrite' has spread so fast?"

"A kid barely old enough to set out to sea on his own walks into a Marine base to take a doctorate exam...and walks out with three of them, one of which is completely unrelated to human anatomy and takes far longer to complete compared to the first two. Yeah, I can't see why anyone would bother remembering him," said Sabo sarcastically. "They probably sent it out in a newsletter or on the Den Den Mushi once the Marine HQ found out what happened."

Ace grimaced.

"Thank _god_ I had the sense to use a psuedonym and a disguise."

"How much you want to bet Garp still hasn't stop bragging about it after I sent him that letter?" joked Sabo.

"No bet."

* * *

Ace was tired and all he wanted to do was let his narcolepsy kick in so he could sleep.

They had docked for the night at some random island on the New World, and most of the crew was out taking a well deserved break.

Ace would not be shocked in the least if Coral or Finn decided they would go with Luffy once he set off on his journey as a proper pirate captain in a few years. Coral found him to be an annoying little brother, and Finn was absolutely _smitten_ with the fact he was learning under _the_ Doctor Pyrite.

He still couldn't believe how fast that stupid name he made up as a joke had spread. The second anyone saw him wearing glasses with his hair tyed back, they called him "Doctor Pyrite". They had to spend a few days on different islands so he could handle any cases sent his way.

On the plus side, word had definitely spread out to the fishmen that there was a human doctor willing to treat them without any of the usual hatred or disgust sent their way. A doctor who also had the habit of relocating orphans that lived above the ocean to sympathetic islands, even if it he rarely asked permission.

Coral had been the one to spread the flag that "Doctor Pyrite" sailed under, and they occasionally made stops in the ocean so Ace could treat any fishmen that needed help. Finn was his very enthusiastic helper/apprentice during those times.

He was half-way asleep when it happened.

A loud explosion woke him up and Sabo's voice sounded from the Den Den Mushi.

"_We're under attack!"_

"Marines?"

"_Pirates trying to rob the island. Not even the fact this is one of Whitebeard's is stopping them."_

Ace cursed. The only reason they bothered going to claimed islands was because none of them were stupid enough to try anything.

Luffy had been over the moon when he found out they had landed on one of Shanks, the first time it happened. Shanks had laughed when Luffy called him and told him about the island later.

He rocketed towards the town and started laying waste to anyone that wasn't a civilian or part of his crew. Luffy was already making a nuisance of himself by taking out several people at once with his Devil fruit powers.

It took them seven long, irritating hours to route out the last of the idiots stupid enough to attack one of the islands under Whitebeard's protection, and another three for Ace and Finn to finish treating the worst of the injuries to the people that lived there.

Finn got some hands-on training in triage, freeing up Ace to deal with the more serious injuries while he dealt with the minor ones. Even Luffy helped out.

By the end of it Ace was bone tired and ready for some sleep. That or food.

One look at the villager's homes however said that it likely wouldn't be remiss to help them at least set up some basic shelter to work from until they could fix everything. He doubted his crew would complain overly much once he explained it to him.

Luck, however, was apparently _not_ on his side because two days in, the Warlord known as Jimbei showed up looking for a fight with Ace. Apparently some idiot though the Spade pirates were the ones to destroy the village...and as a friend of Whitebeard's, Jimbei could not let that act go unpunished.

Ace...was not happy.

* * *

_Five days later..._

Jimbei woke up after the long, hard battle he had with Fire Fist Ace...only to discover his wounds expertly treated and a young fishman who bore a resemblance to a hammerhead shark checking up on him.

"You're awake!"

Jimbei was understandably confused, considering how irate Ace had been at his appearance.

"Captain should be back in a bit," said the younger man. "He wanted to make sure the mayor came to explain what really happened before you went after him again, since you weren't really inclined to listen earlier."

"What's your name?"

"Finn. My sister Coral is currently getting food to keep the Captain and his brothers from eating the village out of house and home since he's starving. Of course considering all three of them are black holes and Captain Ace hasn't eaten in five days it might take a while," said Finn cheerfully.

The Spade pirates had Fishmen on their crew? The obvious fondness the young man had for Ace made Jimbei think a little better of him at least.

Jimbei would openly admit to being astounded by the sheer lack of fear Luffy had for him, even if the questions were both odd and silly.

However it was something that Luffy quoted from Ace that made reminded him almost of Whitebeard.

"Why would I be afraid of you? You're people too, even if you're shaped funny. At least that's what Ace-nii says whenever someone talks bad about Finn and Coral," said Luffy confused.

Jimbei had the feeling he would come to like Ace in relatively short order, if that was how he treated fishmen. It was a nice change of pace from what they usually had to deal with.

However it was seeing Ace walk up to him that recognition hit. He knew that the teen had seemed familiar, and not because of the wanted posters!

"_You're_ Doctor Pyrite?!"

Garp was unusually proud of someone by the name of "Doctor Pyrite"...in between frequent mentions of giving the teen his "Fist of Love" for some reason.

Ace stopped cold and glared at the blond next to him in annoyance.

"I don't know when, and I don't know how, but I _will_ be getting you back for tricking me into taking those exams."

"Yeah, yeah. Not my fault you're a secret overachiever," said the blond dismissively. He shot Ace an irritated look. "If it were any of us, you wouldn't hesitate to join Shitty Gramps in crowing about our accomplishment, but the second anyone starts talking about you, you always try to change the subject as fast as possible. When are you ever going to proud of what you've done, instead of embarrassed by it?"

Ace grumbled in annoyance. Then he checked over Jimbei one last time before washing his hands of him. After all, the Warlord likely had his own doctor on his ship that could handle the rest.

"Why Pyrite?" asked Jimbei.

Sabo snorted.

"Because it sounds like 'pirate' and it's the proper name for a metal called Fool's Gold. Ace was feeling 'punny' at the time, according to him. He didn't even consider the irony of using the name until I pointed it out."

Because Ace was the son of the Pirate King, who everyone knew as "Gold Roger", or Gol D. Roger. Which meant his last name should have been Gol as well.

Ace looked like he could have hit himself for not considering that, but he still held no shame for using such a ridiculous name. Luffy had thought it hilarious regardless.

They were just picking things up when another ship came into view. One bearing the flag of the Whitebeard Pirates.

Ace looked ready to scream in annoyance and rage at having to fight _again_ with hardly any sleep or food after spending five days fighting Jimbei and far too many hours healing the villagers after Whitebeard stated why he was there.

"_Does no one bother to communicate with their allies anymore?!"_ he shouted irate.

Because he could have avoided this entire mess if Jimbei had the wits to tell Whitebeard that he was in the area and was planning to deal with it. Instead he had to deal with giving his crew a chance to run like hell for their ship and hopefully escape himself from the strongest man alive.

It didn't matter if Whitebeard looked like he was regularly hooked up to machines keeping him alive. Ace wasn't stupid enough to think he stood any chance against someone with actual experience.

You didn't get that old being a pirate (especially being a known rival of Gol D. Roger) without learning a lot of ways to stay alive and put down arrogant idiots in their place.

Ace knew he was boned, but he would be damned if he didn't make the old man work for it.


	4. Chapter 4

Ace woke up in an infirmary not his own. He knew this immediately without bothering to open his eyes due to one simple fact.

Everyone on his crew knew that Ace had a mild case of claustrophobia. The easiest way they found to deal with it was to leave one of the doors or windows open, to provide even an illusion of escape. Ace would spend every moment outdoors if he could.

He couldn't hear the sound of the ocean clearly...it was dampened by the closed windows and the wood. Not to mention the smell of his infirmary was different.

The infirmary of his ship always smelled of lemons. This one smelled sterile and it made his nose itch something fierce.

"ACE! Please wake up!" wailed a familiar voice.

"Come on Lu, you know he's gotta be faking it by this point. Not that I blame him...fighting two high-level opponents almost back to back would wipe anyone out," said Sabo.

Ace couldn't keep pretending to sleep when Luffy started poking him.

"Dammit Luffy, I was trying to sleep!" growled Ace.

"Ace!"

He ignored the glomp entirely, as he was used to it at this point.

"What happened?"

"You challenged Whitebeard in order for us to get away, except we ran through the fire wall you created to get to you. Apparently it impressed Whitebeard so much he let us stay on his ship...Finn finally convinced Coral to chase after the ship a few hours later when she returned, and Namur spotted them following."

Namur was _very_ surprised to find Ace had two shark Fishmen on his ship. Particularly the fact that Ace inspired such loyalty that they would track down the _Moby Dick_ and refuse to leave until they knew their captain was safe.

Ace grimaced.

"Let me guess...he didn't believe my story until _after_ I passed out and Jimbei showed up with the mayor."

"Pretty much. On an unrelated note, our ship took more damage that we thought when we crossed from into the New World. It's going to take months to repair, especially since we don't have an eternal pose to an island that has decent shipwrights."

"How? I know we've been keeping a careful eye on the _Romance Dawn_ since we got it!"

"Some of the pirates we dealt with on that island must have decided to make our lives harder, because they did a lot of damage before we killed them," said Sabo annoyed. "Fortunately the _Dawn_ is still salvageable but it's going to take a while to fix her."

Ace groaned.

"Great...so we'll likely be stuck on an island for several months until we can fix her."

"Maybe not," said an unfamiliar voice. Ace turned to see the guy who looked like a walking pineapple approach. "You did help out one of Pop's islands, and he was pretty impressed at the fact you stuck around to help the villagers rather than leave once they were healed. Not to mention the fact you managed to beat Jimbei _and_ survive him going out at half-power despite having very little rest."

(Ace would find out rather quickly Jimbei forgot to mention his 'alter ego' as Doctor Pyrite. Not that the Whitebeard Pirates wouldn't find out soon enough, but still.)

"How would you like to become my sons?" asked Whitebeard.

Ace bristled.

"_Excuse me_?" he hissed. His eyes were almost glowing silver.

Sabo winced.

"Ace is both really protective...and majorly possessive...of the people he claims. He doesn't like it when people try to take someone he considers his," said Sabo.

Ace was growling, and there was a shadow of a dragon behind him.

"I'm not about to join a crew I know nothing about...especially since I have no idea if it's one that would accept _all_ of my crew."

Ace wouldn't even consider joining up with anyone that would reject Coral and Finn. He had given them a chance to prove to themselves they were more than just 'freaks' like their old island called them. Especially Finn, who wanted to become a top-notch surgeon.

Something seemed to pass between him and old man Whitebeard. A strange sort of respect at the way Ace adamantly refused to join such an famous crew of pirates or even consider the idea of becoming one of Whitebeard's sons...unless _all_ of his crew could join as well. Considering the treatment the shark siblings tended to get for their appearance, it made his estimation of Ace's character go up.

More to the point, Ace refused to join a crew who's captain was weak. He had no true way to judge Whitebeard's skills considering the older pirate had challenged him before he had a chance to recover his full strength.

And so it began...Ace's attempts to kill Whitebeard.

* * *

_Two months later..._

"This is getting ridiculous...how many times has that idiot tried to kill Pops?" said Thatch exasperated, as Ace was sent flying off into the ocean...again.

Sabo would have gotten up...except Finn found it hilarious to watch his teacher splash into the water so he was usually the first to retrieve him.

"It is getting excessive," said Marco with annoyance. His 'siblings' all found it entertaining to watch, and started having bets after the third day on how quickly Pops could beat Ace and how far he could send him flying. "Why does he even bother anyway? Pops already said he would be glad to take on the rest of your crew, including the siblings."

Sabo snorted.

"You mean you honestly haven't figured out Ace's real motive? If he wanted Whitebeard dead, the old man would be gone by now."

"Ace is strong, but he's not that strong," scoffed Marco.

"I'm not talking about physical strength, devil fruit power or haki," corrected Sabo. "I've seen him kill Akainu with a single attack."

"Wait... _he's _the one who killed Akainu?!" said Marco.

It was major news among the pirates and marines, that Akainu had been found dead with no real concrete way to explain _how_. The nearest that the marines could tell, and they investigated the incident thoroughly, was that something had caused his heart to stop completely without any warning. He just keeled over in front of his men.

There was an odd mention of St. Elmo's Fire being present, but that was honestly the only abnormality spoken of.

"Ace took offense to the fact the mad dog of the marines was about to kill Luffy. It didn't matter Luffy hasn't earned a bounty yet, all Akainu cared about was that he was traveling with us and fighting with the crew," said Sabo. "Ace said afterwords that he hated using the one-hit-kill technique because it makes killing too easy."

"He doesn't like killing?" said Marco in surprise.

"'Things and homes can be replaced, but a life once taken can never be brought back'," quoted Sabo.

"Wise words," said Marco.

"Which is why I'm pretty sure Whitebeard has already figured out the real reason Ace keeps challenging him, or has a pretty good idea."

"And what reason is that?" asked Marco.

"Ace wants to be sure Whitebeard is strong enough to handle the force the Marines will send after the crew once his heritage is known. The Marines made it pretty clear they make killing anyone of that bloodline a top priority," said Sabo.

"And once Pops proves he's capable of handling Ace's worst?" asked Thatch.

"Then the most terrifying force will be unleashed," said Sabo deadpan. "The mother hen from hell."

That got the two older men to blink.

"'The mother hen from hell'?" repeated Marco.

Sabo merely smirked at them. They had no idea of the shock they were going to be in for once Ace took Whitebeard's mark. He had already heard of what Ace planned to do to the older pirate once he got tired of testing the older man.

Those machines Whitebeard was hooked up to now were going to be a passing memory once Ace had everything ready.

* * *

The first indicator Ace had accepted Whitebeard's offer to become one of his sons, in Sabo's mind, was the day Whitebeard started coughing as his secret barrel of rum went down wrong.

Within a few hours, Sabo noticed a difference in the older pirate's aura. Ace's mother-hen nature had started to kick in, hard.

The fact Ace walked out during dinner with Whitebeard's mark was enough to start a party, particularly since Sabo and the others swiftly followed suit.

(Luffy hated needles, but Ace was a master of distracting him. All it took was the promise Ace would cook his favorite meal and Luffy was too busy fantasizing about meat to notice the tattoo being put on his left shoulder.)

It took Whitebeard a few days to notice his bones and joints didn't creak nearly as much. The nurses were astonished when he was able to move as well as he had at least ten or twenty years ago.

"Alright Ace, what did you do?" asked Sabo.

"Got rid of his arthritis. That is a one-shot dose and it gives me a chance to gauge his health before I bring out the really nasty remedies to fix the rest. By the time I'm done those dialysis machines will be a memory."

"How does getting rid of his aches and pains help gauge his health?" asked Sabo. Finn looked on curiously.

"Some of those remedies won't react to certain people. The arthritis cure however is one that can be given to a large number of people and it's a one-dose remedy that works within hours to reverse the damage to the body. By seeing how quickly it takes effect, I can gauge how well my other remedies will work as well. From what I can tell there should be no issue with fixing up most of the health issues Whitebeard has with a few months," said Ace.

Unknown to Ace, Marco overheard that comment. Whiskey and the other nurses were all astonished at the fact that Whitebeard was moving as if he was forty again, rather than pushing seventy. And he definitely remembered how old Roger used to whip up some nasty tasting medicine that had extraordinarie effects. His hangover remedy was the most effective remedy Marco had ever encountered and one of the few Roger had been willing to part with to Whitebeard and his crew.

(Shanks practically_ begged_ Roger for his super-effective hangover remedy before he died. Roger had put his cabin boy though a lot of headaches before he finally gave it to him after Shanks pranked the hell out of the crew and amused Roger enough to hand it over.)

Marco could only hope Ace didn't inherit his old man's bizarre love of terrible puns. He didn't know _why_ Roger loved his 'serious/Sirius' jokes, but it used to make most of his crew and friends groan in dismay to hear them.

* * *

Finn liked the Whitebeard pirates...but he didn't particularly like their infirmary. That wasn't to say it was insufficient or poorly staffed, but more that Whiskey and the others wouldn't let him do anything but errands when they learned he wanted to be a surgeon.

Ace did give him homework, but he also believed that practical experience was often more useful. Finn missed the days when they were still the Spade pirates because Ace would allow him to assist during treatment and would teach him interesting tidbits while allowing him to learn from a more 'hands-on' approach.

And yet here, all he was allowed to do was clean up and reading. It was irritating. They didn't even quiz him as often as Ace did. At least when his Boss was teaching him, he made it fun and easy to remember!

"What's wrong Finn?" asked Luffy.

"It's nothing..."

"Then why are you so unhappy?"

"The nurses here won't let me do anything besides clean-up and reading. At least Ace makes it fun and allows me to help while keeping a firm eye on me, except for the really serious stuff," said Finn depressed.

Ace allowed Finn to help with the basic treatment and even let him do solo treatment for the minor things, but in the really serious cases he went solo while explaining things to Finn whenever he had a chance. During surgery Finn was his assistant and he watched with avid attention the entire time.

"Why not ask Ace?" said Luffy.

Finn looked thoughtful.

"Good point. I am _his_ apprentice after all. I guess I hoped for too much action once we switched to an established crew. It's only natural that they wouldn't allow someone of limited experience to do anything remotely useful."

Ace was a firm believer that practical experience was more important than book learning. It was how people originally learned their trade before books became widely available, and from what Finn had seen the _Moby Dick_ didn't have nearly enough on the subject to make him a proper surgeon.

Finn found Ace after he was sneaking out of the kitchens again.

Ace took one look at his expression and smirked.

"I was wondering when you'd finally snap."

"You knew?"

"People without training are rarely taken seriously by established crews who already have their set routines. Unless you can prove you already know what you're doing the best you could have hoped for was that we hit an island where they would be willing to train you. Which is why I've been keeping an ear out for any interesting cases and repairing the _Dawn_ on the sly."

"You've been repairing the _Romance Dawn_?" said Finn. He had almost forgotten about it.

"Well yeah, she's as much a part of the Spade Pirates as you are," said Ace, before a mischievous expression crossed his face. "Go get your tools and follow me. We're going out on a little trip."

Finn caught on to what Ace meant by 'tools' and started packing. He had the feeling the famous "Doctor Pyrite" was about to make another appearance.

It was only a matter of time before the Whitebeards found out, but for now he knew Ace wanted to keep it a secret.

"How are we going to explain this to Marco and the others?"

"Already got that covered. It's well known by the fishmen by this point that Doctor Pyrite uses our ship to get around, so I told Namur we got a request for a pick-up and we'll be gone for a few days. Naturally since I can't steer the ship solo I took you with me since you've assisted with the Doctor before. I overheard from the DDM Network that there's been a strange outbreak on one of Oyaji's protected islands. From the sound of things it might be a case of advanced food poisoning."

"What if Namur forgets to tell Marco?"

"Then we were checking to see if the repairs on the _Dawn_ would hold up for short trips while picking up the doctor, and we had trouble getting back because I forgot to grab an eternal pose for the _Moby Dick_. I can find Sabo and Luffy, and they won't leave the ship once they figure out where we've gone so we'll be able to find them again within a week anyway."

Finn was already excited. It had been so long since he had any experience with Ace so he was quite eager to set off.

Then he noticed an issue.

"How are we going to get the _Dawn _out?"

Since there was no way for smaller ships like _Romance Dawn_ to keep up with the pace of something like the _Moby Dick_, there was a small dock inside the bigger ship for the smaller ones to be placed in.

One of the older ships had been moved to a different _Moby_ when Whitebeard took out Ace, as a show of good faith. Any real captain would have been quite irate to leave their ship and Jolly Roger behind, and it gave them a chance to repair the _Dawn_ on their free time if they decided against joining the Whitebeard Pirates.

Of course the supplies would have to be paid out of their own money if they did decide against joining, but that was to be expected. Finn had no idea Ace had been secretly repairing their ship in between his mock attempts to murder Whitebeard.

That being said, it was going to be quite difficult to get out of the ship covertly in the middle of the night when the door was firmly shut and opening it would attract a lot of attention from the crow's nest.

Ace grinned.

"Oh ye of little faith. I have a plan," said Ace.

"Why does that not fill me with confidence?"

The last time Ace had a plan, they left three marine ships filled to the brim with whip cream and chocolate sauce, and all of the marines had lost their left shoes because of the super glue attached to them.

And no one was entirely certain _how_ he had pulled it off in such a short time without anyone seeing him do it.

Ace merely walked to the wall...and put a hand on it, before leaning his forehead against it.

For a few moments, nothing happened...but to Finn's disbelief the outer door opened and he didn't hear a single shout from the deck about it. It wasn't exactly _silent_ after all.

His curiosity lasted as long as it took for the _Dawn_ to leave the Moby's direct line of sight.

"How?"

"All ships that have a long enough history of service, especially those with such a lively crew, tend to develop a 'spirit' to them. A good captain will often consider their ship as much a part of the crew as a living member, because without the ship there wouldn't be a proper crew in the first place. The more adventures and experiences they go through, the more developed the spirit becomes. The _Dawn_ has one, and I notice that all three _Moby's _ have a distinct soul to them. I just asked politely if it would mind letting us leave for a bit to help one of Pop's islands with a medical problem and keep the watchers from noticing."

"You _asked_ the ship."

"Find someplace quiet on the _Dawn_ and just let your mind wander. Once she knows you're trying to connect with her, you'll hear her voice. It's like listening to the sea underwater really...you know it has a voice of it's own, but the trick is to actually _listen_ for it."

Finn...could only nod. Any Fishman worth their name could hear the voice of the sea and understood that she had her moods and tempers. Some heard her clearer than most.

It had never occurred to him that ships would have such a voice as well.

(He found Ace was right..._Romance Dawn_ did have a voice and she absolutely _adored_ Ace because he listened to her properly and treated her like one of the crew. He wondered what the _Moby_ sounded like.)


	5. Chapter 5

Doctor Pyrite's appearance along with his unusual assistant was met with absolute relief. No one questioned Finn's credentials and it was incredibly carthartic to jump right into triage.

Ace took one look at the symptoms and the cause of the problem and gave the mayor some good news for once.

"It's definitely advanced food poisoning. With the right treatment everyone should make a full recovery, but I would like to find out what cause the problem in the first place so that no one falls violently ill like this again."

"Of course, I'll lead you to the fruit groves."

So far all the victims had been workers of the fruit groves that the island prided itself in. The inhabitants had even narrowed it down to one fruit tree in particular, a sort of peach.

Ace took one of the 'safe' fruits and one of the 'infected' and cut them both open.

"I think I see the issue. The infected ones have some form of mold festering inside, but the outside remains unaffected so people don't realize the danger until after they've had some. The discoloration is so minor that it's easy to miss if you don't notice the tree isn't healthy."

Ace inspected the tree a bit closer. He pulled off an odd sort of bug from one of the branches.

"It seems to me this little guy must have eaten something that didn't agree with him, and his leavings infected the tree, producing the mold. Are these insects common to the area?"

The mayor looked at it properly. It was almost like a slug.

"They look familiar, but they don't appear to be any variety of slug I recognize and I know most of the varieties on the island."

"It's possible this is a mutation of a native species. I would highly recommend getting rid of the ones that aren't native to the island and if necessary replacing the trees after you've purged the area. While the loss of the infected trees will cause your profits to take a hit, the cost of treating your people would make things worse," said Ace professionally. He pushed up his glasses for good measure. "If it continues to reappear, you might want to find the conditions to cause the mutation so that you can avoid them."

Ace left to find Finn already preparing the remedy he had given him to cure the worst of the illness.

Considering they were on a time crunch, Ace didn't want to spend too much effort healing everyone. Besides, if he allowed their natural immune systems to recover after minimal treatment, there was a chance they might build up a resistance to the toxin that had caused so much trouble in the first place.

Whatever doubts the villagers had towards a fishman being in their presence and working on medicine, it went away once the remedy took effect.

Though once again Ace attempted to slip away without asking for thanks. He didn't do this for the money or gratitude after all. He only did it because he knew people needed help.

Which left Finn to take the compliments for his boss.

"Your teacher is quite the shy one, isn't he?" said the mayor's wife.

"Doctor Pyrite likes to help others, but when it comes to talking about his own accomplishments he gets all bashful and deflects them. It annoys his brother's something fierce because they like bragging about him and he would never hesitate to crow about their deeds. In fact one of them had to trick him into getting a proper license in the first place," admitted Finn.

"How did you become his assistant?" she asked.

"Doctor Pyrite finds the whole animosity towards fishmen ridiculous. When he found out I wanted to become a surgeon he asked if I wanted to be his apprentice and learn that way, since it was unlikely I would find a school willing to take me in. 'People are people, regardless of what shape their body takes'. In his eyes I'm just as capable as a human," said Finn proudly.

The woman smiled. She had a feeling Whitebeard would love to meet Doctor Pyrite. Never mind Jimbei.

* * *

_On the Moby Dick..._

"Where are they?" demanded Marco.

Sabo looked unconcerned, as did Luffy. Namur, however, looked sheepish as he forgot to tell Marco where the two were before dinner.

Ace never missed a meal, so when he failed to come to dinner _and_ breakfast, Marco had known something was wrong. To make it even more vexing, _Romance Dawn_ was no longer docked inside the ship.

"Ace said something about giving a lift to a man called 'Doctor Pyrite'," said Namur.

Marco twitched, but Sabo's expression said volumes.

"I had a feeling when he missed dinner. Ace has been giving Doctor Pyrite rides to afflicted islands and let him have full run of the infirmery whenever fishmen came asking for treatment. Finn's helped the doctor before, so he likely jumped at the chance to go."

"You're telling me this Pyrite is the reason why your crew didn't have a doctor?" asked Marco.

There was one with medical training, but he admitted that he rarely had much to do because someone else had taken full control over the crew's health and that he mostly helped that person.

The crew seemed more amused than anything when Marco and Whiskey failed to find the doctor in charge after Whitebeard defeated Ace.

"So where are they now?"

"Ace may or may not have figured out a way to hack the Den Den Mushi Network. He probably heard that an island was having a crisis involving health issues and brought Finn with him. I know Finn has been rather frustrated working in the infirmary and would have jumped at the chance."

"Why would he be frustrated?" asked Namur.

"Because Doctor Pyrite is a great believer of learning by doing, and all Finn was doing here was boring stuff. Doctor Pyrite let him help in the easier medical procedures and had him acting as a spare set of hands during the complex stuff while throwing out interesting information that Finn could remember during surgery!" said Luffy.

"Finn was frustrated because he went from a 'trusted apprentice' to a 'lowly intern' when we joined this crew," explained Sabo.

Namur nodded. That explained the frustration he had noticed in the younger fishman.

"How did he get the other ship out without us noticing though?" wonder Marco.

"When it comes to Ace, I've quit asking 'how' and start complaining about the 'why'?" said Sabo sagely. Luffy nodded with open amusement.

* * *

Ace was ready to leave. The village was mostly fine and by this point the mayor had agreed to share the Den Den Mushi number of "Doctor Pyrite" with the other islands they had contact with that were part of Whitebeard's protection.

There was a very good reason he kept a separate Den Den Mushi for his alter ego. And kept that snail in a sound-proof box when he wasn't acting as Doctor Pyrite.

Finn had already gotten enough supplies to last them back to the _Moby_...which was heading their way, according to Ace.

If they wanted to avoid being busted, they would have to leave soon.

Ace was hoping they'd become 'grounded' for leaving without permission. It gave them a convienent excuse not to leave the ship and he was already feeling the edges of his narcolepsy starting to creep in.

He planned to sleep for several hours.

Unsurprisingly, Marco found them before they reached the other ship.

"You two are in a great deal of trouble," he said omniously.

Finn looked repentant, but Ace had an expression of "I don't really give a damn". Marco glared at him.

"I'm grounding both of you for two months and putting you on chore duty. If you want to leave the ship you'll have to be escorted by a senior crew member the entire time."

Finn was pissed, but Ace hid the fact that this was the outcome he was actually hoping for once they were busted.

It meant he could sleep in, since odds were that the next island they would go to was the one they just left.

He did not want the crew finding out he was Doctor Pyrite.

(The first thing Ace did, once the _Romance Dawn_ was docked in the other ship, was find the first empty crow's nest, ward it against people bothering him, and go straight to sleep. He didn't wake up until dinner.)

"So what's the real reason you fixed the _Dawn_ anyway?" asked Sabo one night.

Ace noticed Luffy was curious to the answer as well.

"Well a certain _someone _is going to need a reliable ship once he turns seventeen," said Ace grinning.

Luffy's jaw dropped.

"No way...you're giving me the _Romance Dawn_?"

"Consider it a birthday present as well as my way of wishing you good luck on becoming a famous pirate captain," said Ace. "At least this way I _know_ you have a reliable ship to carry you into the Grand Line again and you'll already be familiar with where everything is. Of course we're going to train your ass off before that point so you can be almost as awesome as Oyaji or Shanks."

Luffy was practically vibrating in his seat. He couldn't believe Ace was going to give him the _Romance Dawn_.

Sabo could understand his reasoning though. As long as he was one of the Whitebeards, the odds of the _Dawn_ seeing any action outside of supply runs were very slim indeed. By giving her to Luffy, the ship would see one more crew off to the Grand Line and possibly get one last adventure in before they reached the New World.

Knowing Luffy, he'd probably keep the ASL flag inside the captain's quarters.

"There's also the fact that the others will have to top my gift, which means you'll be pretty well prepared once you finally start your own journey," said Ace smugly.

He was going to enjoy seeing the Whitebeard and Shanks attempt at topping the gift of a fully functioning ship like the _Dawn. _

(Hearing Shanks curse him out rather profusely for it was music to his ears.)

* * *

"Wait, so Ace's birthday is on New Year's?" said Marco.

"He never celebrates it unless we go out of our way to remind him _we're_ glad he's alive. It's like he has no interest in being another year older at all," said Sabo exasperated.

It annoyed Sabo to no end that Ace kept acting as though he were unimportant. Like he was..._expendable_. He had the worst feeling someone in Ace's past had hurt him badly and made him feel as though he was worth less than everyone else by default.

It would neatly explain the fact Ace would go on and on about his brother's achievements, but never once speak about his own. It was beyond frustrating.

"Any idea what we should do for his eighteenth?" asked Marco.

"...Well I know he plans to break open the bottles of expensive booze he kept stealing from Garp."

Marco blinked.

"Expensive booze?"

"Every time Garp docked his ship at our island so he could 'train' us, Ace has gotten him back by practically robbing the ships he was on. He made a special emphasis on going after booze and useful supplies...over half our medical stock came from Garp's ship, though he was careful not to steal too much at once," explained Sabo.

"Ace robbed the marines?" said Thatch grinning.

"Mostly just Garp," said Sabo.

(A few hours later, Sabo saw Thatch sidle up to Ace and ask about the booze. He walked away with some of the less expensive bottles that Ace had stolen.)

_A few days later..._

Ace woke up with several cherry blossoms in his room. There was an entire path made of them that lead out to the deck.

"_Happy 18th birthday, Ace!"_ read the banner made by Luffy and several others on the crew.

Ace noted that the tattoo on Luffy's left shoulder looked just slightly off, and made a mental note to check that his little brother was taking proper care of himself. This _was_ his first tattoo after all. (It later turned out that he had gotten some food dye on it.)

Ace grinned when he realized that the crew had set up a massive birthday party on one of the islands that was under their protection...and that Shanks would be coming as well.

(He had been contacted via Sabo.)

"If it isn't the little dragon! Happy birthday brat."

"If it isn't the old geezer. Have you killed your liver yet, or has your wife managed to keep you from dying of alcohol poisoning?" Ace shot back.

"I'm not his wife!" said Benn.

"You sure? Last time I saw you two, you nagged him enough to _be_ his wife," said Ace dubiously.

Marco was having a hard time breathing, as he was too busy holding his sides from laughing so hard at the look on Shanks' face. Any annoyance he felt seeing the red-haired pirate there died at the way Ace kept making pot-shots at his ego.

Shanks looked slightly annoyed.

"That's it brat, I challenge you to a drinking contest!"

"...Do you want to break open the bottle I stole from Shitty Gramps when we first met now or after? I'm finally old enough to enjoy it after all."

Shanks brightened.

"Let's enjoy it now, since that sort of thing isn't something you should use in a drinking contest."

"Damn straight. Sixty year old _anything_ should be _savored_, not guzzled like cheap swill!" said Ace.

"I heard the words sixty year old booze," said Whitebeard, eyes crinkling with open amusement.

Ace produced the bottle, causing Marco to whistle in appreciation.

"Where did you get _that_?"

"Stole it from Shitty Gramps when I was five," said Ace proudly. "Odds are he would take _forever_ to crack it open and enjoy it, so I figured I'd save it for when I was old enough to drink and not get bitched at by the adults."

Whitebeard let off a booming laugh at that, and Shanks guffawed as well.

"Well crack it open already and someone get some decent glasses!" said Shanks.

Ace ended up sharing the bottle with Whitebeard, Shanks, Marco, and Benn. After which he _may_ have cheated a little in order to beat Shanks at the drinking game.

Most fun he'd had on his birthday in years, in both this life and his previous one.


	6. Chapter 6

In retrospect, the fact Ace managed to keep his 'secret identity' as Doctor Pyrite a complete secret for an entire year was rather impressive considering pirates would bet on anything.

Whiskey and the other nurses were quite eager to meet the young man being hailed as a medical genius that would treat practically anyone for a much lower rate of pay than someone of his skill could demand. The fishmen alone were singing his praises because he treated them with dignity and respect, despite being human.

Too bad the man was practically a ghost. He would appear during major crisis in the New World, do his job with impressive efficiency, then disappear without a trace before anyone could get a decent picture of him.

All that was available was a basic description of him.

He was in his late teens, had tanned skin, wore simple glasses, had long black hair he kept in a simple ponytail and wore decent clothing and a white lab coat. He also had no patience for politics and would punch the lights out of anyone stupid enough to try and interfere with his work in saving lives.

Case in point, he had knocked out three mayors and a Marine who thought it was acceptable to deny treatment to pirates or fishmen because of their occupation or their race. Rumor had it he was difficult to find because he didn't want to deal with idiot nobles harassing him to become their _personal_ doctor.

Especially the women, considering all reports of him stated he was 'quite handsome and charming'.

Ace's bad feeling only grew until it was impossible to ignore.

Finally he couldn't take it any more, and went to find Marco.

"Who's been sent out lately on the smaller ships?" he asked bluntly.

Marco blinked, but everyone had seen how Ace had been pacing all day.

It wasn't until Marco mentioned Sabo's team that the bad feeling solidified.

Ace knew exactly what he would have to do.

"What do you need boss?" asked Finn.

"Go grab your gear and at least two of the nurses. I'm going to get the _Dusk to Dawn_," said Ace.

Finn paled, and ran like hell to get Whiskey and the others.

"What's the _Dusk to Dawn_?" asked Marco to Coral.

"It's a ship."

"Then why did Finn look like there were marines on his ass ready to turn him into sushi?" asked Marco.

"Because the only time Ace brings out the _Dusk to Dawn_...is when speed is necessary to save lives. It's the fastest ship in the world."

"Then how did he hide it on the _Moby Dick_?" asked Marco, unimpressed by the claim.

"It's...you have to _see_ the ship in action to understand why Ace doesn't bring it out much. Should prove entertaining to see everyone's reactions once they see it," said Coral.

The _Dusk to Dawn_ was considerably smaller than the _Romance Dawn_ and easily fit on the main deck of the _Moby Dick_. Ace was unfurling an odd piece of sail that was attached to four poles that had odd writing on them. Closer inspection revealed that the entire thing fit into a perfect square.

"How are you going to get that in the water from up here?" asked Marco baffled.

"It wouldn't last ten minutes on the Grand Line in the water," scoffed Ace. "Then again that isn't what I built it for."

He made sure that he was clear of the sails of the _Moby Dick_...before he started filling the odd box with fire.

The sail began to float upwards until it was taunt.

"Anyone who's coming with us, better get on now," said Ace.

Ace looked at Marco specifically.

"You can either get in now or follow behind us. Either way I'm not stopping."

Marco got in, curious to see what Ace was planning. Finn, Whiskey and Coral got in as well. In the front and back were several medical supplies and rations.

Ace began heating up the box, releasing even more warm air.

So you could imagine the shock of the Whitebeard pirates when the strange ship began to _float_ over the deck.

"What on earth?!" shouted Izou.

Ace snorted.

"I swear, the reaction people get from seeing a hot air balloon for the first time is always hilarious."

"A _what_?" said Marco, staring at him.

"A hot air balloon. Hot air rises, cold air descends...when you need to get somewhere fast on the Grand Line, I've found this is the quickest way to do it because you're not constantly fighting the waves all the time. Especially when I do this," said Ace.

He created odd propellers with his flames, which made the odd ship move. It was already rising above the main sails of the _Moby Dick_ and getting higher. Marco had never been this far up without transforming into his phoenix form. Whiskey was gripping the sides of the ship looking distinctly uncomfortable.

The hammerhead twins barely batted an eye.

"So where are we going in such a hurry?" asked Marco, once they were out of view of the ship.

"Knowing Ace, he probably sensed something bad happened to Sabo's group that requires urgent medical attention. That or Sabo deliberately triggered his mother hen reflex because the mission went bad," said Coral, taking out a book.

Marco was about to ask what she meant when the Den Den Mushi he brought got a signal.

His confusion turned to shock as he gave Ace a rather odd look hearing Thatch on the snail. He sounded bad.

"What happened?"

"_Some smart ass bounty hunter crew thought it was a _brilliant_ idea to kill us for our bounties. We're alive, but some of us are in really bad shape and Sabo isn't looking so great. I think they got him with poison or something," _said Thatch. He sounded like he was in a lot of pain himself.

"_Like I said before, Ace's mother hen radar will pick up something went wrong," _said Sabo.

"_Yeah, well you also said Doctor Pyrite would make an appearance and I haven't seen anyone fitting his description yet,"_ snarked Boris.

"_How far out are you now?" _asked Thatch.

"We're on the _Dusk to Dawn_ and we'll be there in about two hours at least," said Ace promptly.

"_I really wish I could have been there to see their reactions to that ship,"_ said Sabo, coughing.

"What's the condition of your ship?" asked Marco.

"_The hunters are guarding the port...there's no way to get to it, but they're also not stupid enough to try anything thanks to the marines being around. It's safe for now," _said Thatch.

"How many of your team are there?" asked Ace.

"_Seven of us, three are badly injured and only Sabo is poisoned," _said Thatch promptly.

"We can get you back to the _Moby Dick_ and odds are Pops will agree to come get the ship once you're in proper beds. Hang in there," said Ace.

The snail cut off, likely because they needed radio silence. However Marco was still giving Ace a look.

"How did you know?" he demanded.

"Because Ace is the biggest mother hen alive," said Coral and Finn in unison.

"Once Ace claims someone as his, he tends to develop a...sensitivity...towards trouble," said Coral.

"Every time Luffy or Sabo found themselves in hot water, Ace _always_ knows," said Finn.

"To be fair, my luck is pretty predictable. If it thinks I haven't had enough...excitement...in my life then things tend to go to hell rather fast. And since I named Sabo and Luffy my blood brothers, they got a share of it as well. Or it amplified whatever chaotic luck they naturally had."

Luffy, from what he could tell, got the bulk of what Ace liked to bitterly call "Potter Luck". Fortunately he was a durable brat, and despite acting like an idiot most of the time he did have a brain under his hat.

Which was why Ace drilled as many survival skills and useful knowledge as he could into Luffy's brain, so that when he went out he would be able to keep his crew alive as well.

Luffy planned to hide his Whitebeard tattoo with a scarf. He wanted to make a name on his own right, not by hiding behind Pops. The only time he planned to reveal that particular mark on his shoulder would be when he was in over his head and wanted the world to know that his rookie crew was under Whitebeard's protection.

After all, Luffy was the 'baby brother' of the Whitebeard pirates. That mark would be enough to make most of the bigger players think twice about killing him outright, at least enough that Luffy would have a chance to get out of a mess.

(Ace fully suspected the only ones Luffy would need to worry about were the Seven Warlords and the other two Yonko. Considering he was already surviving in the New World, odds are he'd be able to handle most of the 'big players' in Paradise, much less any of the Blue seas.)

"What did Sabo mean when he said Doctor Pyrite would be showing up?" asked Whiskey. By this point she had mostly gotten over her fear of being so high up...by avoiding looking anywhere at the ocean below. So long as she kept her focus on the others on the odd ship, she could cope.

Finn looked at Coral, and they both snickered.

"You'll find out soon enough," said Finn.

* * *

Ace was mostly right on his estimate. Apparently the winds were favoring them at the moment, because they cut a good thirty minutes off their travel time. Whiskey whimpered when she realized they were making a controlled descent.

Ace stored away the _Dusk to Dawn_ within minutes...their arrival was hardly discreet and he didn't want the marines or the bounty hunters finding their transport back to the _Moby Dick. _Particularly since Marco thought to grab the eternal pose for the ship.

Whiskey and Marco were baffled...the shock filled their features as they watched Ace 'vanish' his freckles, toss his hat to Coral who hid it neatly away...and put on a coat and glasses after tying his hair back.

His internal radar for his baby brothers was already in high gear, leading him straight to Sabo. Finn dutifully carried the medical supplies and his own gear.

"About time you made it, _Doctor Pyrite_," coughed Sabo. He looked horrible.

Ace examined him for a minute, before reaching into his coat to pull out a syringe. He jabbed Sabo in the leg.

"What did you just give him?" demanded Whiskey.

"A broad-spectrum anti-toxin," said Ace.

To the complete bafflement of the injured, Marco and Whiskey, Ace started talking rapid fire to Finn who went to work without hesitation. After a few moments, once the shock wore off and Whiskey came to the revelation _Ace_ was in fact the mysterious Doctor Pyrite, she started to follow his lead as well.

"Ace is Doctor Pyrite," said Marco. It wasn't a question.

"It was a pain in the ass tricking him into taking those exams, and the only thing he did was change his appearance slightly and switch his last name to something he found funny. And the most amusing part is that the Marines have absolutely no clue Pyrite and Fire Fist Ace are the exact same person. If Ace were so inclined he could drop being a pirate any time he wanted and stay a freelance doctor," said Sabo. He looked much better already.

"I can't believe Ace is a doctor," said Thatch in shock.

"Doctor, veterinarian, surgeon, dentist...Ace knows more about medicine than people bother to study in their life," said Sabo.

Marco blinked.

"Ace is a dentist?"

"According to him the marines didn't bother to give him the license for 'dental surgery' because he already had one as a general surgeon," said Sabo.

"And Finn?" asked Marco.

"Wants to be a surgeon, so when he found out who Ace was he begged to become his apprentice. Ace agreed to teach him everything he knew. On an unrelated note, Ace had everyone on our crew certified to perform CPR within a month of them joining. Even Luffy knows how to do it," said Sabo.

"Huh...so that's where he learned it," said Marco.

"What do you mean?" asked Sabo.

"Some idiot from one of the other ships went overboard. A Devil Fruit user. Luffy managed to grab him and bring him on the ship but he must have hit his head because he wasn't breathing. Before we could shout for one of the nurses, Luffy was pressing into his chest at a steady rate before breathing into his mouth. He had the man coughing up water in under a minute," said Marco.

"Like I said, Ace is a mother hen. He wanted to make sure our crew knew basic emergency techniques in case we were on our own, and Luffy is no exception."

In under an hour, Ace had the worst off treated to the point they could be relocated back to the _Moby Dick_. Whiskey was openly impressed with what she saw and wondering why Ace never thought to help out on the infirmary.

She said as much.

Finn and Sabo laughed outright.

"Ace _hates_ having his talent recognized. I had to argue with him just to take the exams!" said Sabo.

"You're kidding. With skills like his why would he be embarrassed by them?" asked Thatch.

"Hell if I know. Ace hates being recognized for his own skills and always downplays how good he is. He barely tolerates having a bounty under his name," said Sabo.

Ace glared at Sabo.

"I don't hate having a bounty, I just hate fan boys and fan girls," said Ace annoyed.

"Then why do you like Finn?" asked Sabo.

"Because while he's a fan boy he doesn't let the hero worship get the better of him and actively improving himself. There is no greater hell than a fan girl horde," said Ace shuddering.

After one too many fan girl hordes, Harry's greatest fear became the mob of women trying to get into his pants for one reason or another. He knew the difference between "lust" and actual "love".


	7. Chapter 7

The smell was driving the Whitebeard pirates insane, even as Luffy and Sabo were snickering openly. Worse, they knew _someone_ was baking because someone had seen Whitebeard eating something made fresh shortly after the smell began.

What was the smell you ask?

Someone was baking cookies. Not just chocolate chip, but sugar cookies, peanut butter, oatmeal (hopefully without raisins)...the smell was driving the pirates insane because no one had successfully found the source. And it had been around the ship _all day_.

Thatch had to fend off no less than fifteen inquisitive pirates, and it was only the fact that no one could see evidence of cookies baking that kept them from wrecking the kitchen for a few dozen.

Whitebeard found the entire mess very amusing, as he already _had_ a plate of his preferred cookie, as did Luffy and Sabo.

It was only when dinner rolled around that the source finally revealed itself.

"You have got to be joking... _you_ were the one making cookies all day?" demanded Marco.

Ace cackled, while Sabo and Luffy laughed.

"Ace loves pulling the cookie trick since he got his fire powers," said Luffy.

"Well yeah, can you think of a better way to use fire than to make several dozen batches of cookies all at once and driving your crew crazy trying to track down the smell?" said Ace laughing. "By the way Thatch, I may have raided your pantry for the ingredients."

"Share some macadamia nuts and we'll call it even," grinned Thatch. He had to admit, it was a good prank. Ace handed him an entire plate full of them. Thatch fell in love immediately, because Ace had managed to get the texture and consistency _just_ right and didn't overcook them.

Most of the Whitebeards patted Ace on the back with good humor...the reason the scent of fresh cookies had stuck around all day was because Ace had spent the better _part_ of the day cookies different batches and stashing them. He had waited until dinner when the last batch was cooled to put them out.

"How did you make so many of these anyway?" asked Marco, snacking on some oatmeal cookies. Thankfully without the raisins.

"Again, I used my devil fruit powers. I stuck to the back of the ship and made a long platform top and bottom made of fire just above where the water was so no one could see what I was doing to cook them. Sabo helped to stash the cookies away once we kept Luffy from spilling the beans and I made sure Pops got the first batch," said Ace. "We might not have had a proper cook on our old ship, but as long as we had enough fish we were able to make due."

"No proper cook my ass...Ace you acted as both the cook and the ship's doctor!" said Sabo scoffing. "Though how the hell you managed to feed three black holes on top of the crew I'll never get."

"Practice," deadpanned Ace.

Specifically the practice of keeping the two Dursley males and that harpy bitch Petunia feed. Ace learned how to cook massive feasts in short order from them.

In any case the crew thoroughly enjoyed the surprise Ace had literally cooked up for them. On an unrelated note Thatch found cooking massive meals for the crew much easier now that he knew Ace could regulate his flames enough that he could cook with them. It made making massive roasts and other meals much easier if he could do them all at the same time...so long as he kept Ace fed anyway. Keeping them at a certain temperature was tiring and Ace had a black hole for a stomach. Cooking for one hungry pirate was much easier than a whole crew.

* * *

"What do you have there Ace?" asked Izou.

Ace showed the other man the thing he had in the small bowl. It looked like a baby bird.

"I highly doubt that poor thing will last long without a mother, even if you did take care of it."

"You forget I'm a trained veternarian. Besides, I happen to have a passion for birds," said Ace grinning.

Izou looked dubious, but if Ace wanted to try and raise a bird then it was up to him. Then again if anyone knew how to care for a fledgling it was likely Ace.

"That is one butt ugly bird," said Thatch. "Why are you even keeping it?"

"Like you were any prettier when you first came out?" snarked Ace. "Besides, birds can mimic human speech, so I want to see if I can't train it to call Marco 'mama'."

Thatch snorted.

"That's happened before. More times than you would think, actually," said Thatch in amusement. "Sometimes we even come across birds that _recognize_ him and still call him 'mama' or something else. Hell, one even went 'Yoi!' regularly whenever he was around Marco."

Ace snorted with laughter.

"Please tell me you have pictures."

"I may be persuaded for more of those macadamia nut cookies you make," said Thatch. "That or a cake...Luffy said your cakes were better than the cookies."

"Give me about two hours, provided this little guy lets me away that long, and I can have it made. Though we'll have to hide it from the rest of the crew...knowing Luffy he'll sniff it out regardless and we might as well share with Pops."

"Deal. So what breed of bird is it anyway?"

"I have a sneaking suspicion, but I don't want to get my hopes up," said Ace grinning.

If he was right, then he was going to laugh and laugh at the shocked looks on everyone's faces.

On the plus side, at least he had project to keep him occupied. Ace when bored was a terrifying force of nature, as the crew learned to their horror (and Thatch's delight at having a co-conspirator).

For the next month and a half, the baby bird grew up a little, but not at the rate it should have in the eyes of the crew. However Ace had a particularly anticipatory look on his face as if he were waiting for something.

"Ace, maybe you should let the bird go, yoi. That poor thing hasn't even fledged yet and I know they grow up faster than this."

"Actually I was waiting for the bond to solidify before I did anything. This particular breed can be so judgemental at times," said Ace.

Ace had been around the adult form of the bird he _knew_ this particular breed came from. He had also seen that they tended to mature a bit slower than normal once they first hatched, unless they bonded to an active source of magic...like say a witch or wizard. Then the bond helped them to grow up in a flash as the bond solidified and they became a proper familiar.

The crew watched with slight sympathy as Ace took the baby bird he had named "Jack" up to the main deck. Then watched in shock as he lit the baby bird on _fire _with his powers.

"What are you doing?!" shouted Izou...before his mouth dropped in absolute shock as Ace dropped his flames and the fireball _grew_ in size.

Small bouts of flame flew past the deck and were snuffed out very quickly, but everyone was staring in complete disbelief as the baby bird Ace had picked up on the island suddenly grew into a fully matured bird about the size of a swan.

There was no mistaking the breed of the chick now...not with Marco on board.

"You have got to be shitting me, yoi," said Marco.

Ace cackled.

"Unlike you lot, I know what a baby phoenix looks like," said Ace smugly.

Jack trilled and nuzzled under Ace's hand while the freckled teen gently stroked his breast feathers with an expert hand. It was clear the mythical bird _really_ enjoyed the treatment.

"Soooo cool!" said Luffy, eyes wide with excitement.

Sabo face-palmed.

"Only you Ace, would somehow find a baby _phoenix_ on a completely random island," said Sabo in exasperated fondness.

"Not my fault. I blame my luck."

"...Sadly I blame it as well. Your luck goes straight from chaotic to 'Why'?"

Luffy snickered. He liked Ace's luck...it made things so much more interesting than they could have been.

Like the time they crashed into an angry sea king calf only to discover the poor little guy had a bad tooth. Sabo had banged his head against the mast for an hour while Ace did some quick surgery to remove the bad tooth and gave the poor thing a pain killer for it.

(As a result they were able to sail straight into the New World without being killed because the calf's pod had seen the humans helping it without trying to hurt him. They kept the other sea kings far away from the ship...as well as two very tough Marine ships that only backed off when they found out that the ship had the protection of the massive creatures.)

"You know what this means right? I means I'm going to have to train Jack to call Marco 'Mama'," cackled Ace.

"In this case Ace, I would have to say Marco is the 'papa'. You're too much of a mother hen to be called anything other than 'mama'," said Sabo. Ace flipped him off.

(Ace would pout for days when Sabo's prediction proved correct.)

* * *

It was such a peaceful day. And then something _massive_ came out of nowhere, grabbing Whitebeard and flying off with him. Luffy managed to reach out and grab the thing, but they were too far out and knocking the beast out would send all three into the ocean.

Marco and Jack immediately took off after the thing, but it was too fast.

"...Did Oyaji just get kidnapped?" asked Thatch in disbelief.

"I think he was," said Haruta in equal shock.

Then it sunk in what happened and the crew started panicking. It took Marco returning before some semblance of order came back and they started going in the general direction the creature flew off in.

_With Whitebeard and Luffy..._

"**So...how bad do you think the others are going to be panicking from your impromptu flight Pops?" **said the beast cheekily.

"Grahahahaha... a little excitement is good for the soul!" laughed Whitebeard. Once he got over the shock of flying in the air with something holding him up, he rather enjoyed it.

Ace couldn't take him up on the balloon because of the weight issue, but had promised he had something almost as good.

"Shishishi... Ace is the most awesome older brother ever!"

"**Are you saying that because I don't mind taking you with me, or because I promised to show you how to do something similar once you trained up enough?"** asked Ace dryly.

The irony of the situation was that Ace's animagus form was a greater dragon with black scales that fit the description of the Western variety, and Luffy's father was _named_ Dragon.

"Shishishishi..."

Whitebeard cast a glance at his son.

"Is this a part of that strange ability that resembles a devil fruit but isn't?"

"**Yep. Transforming into an animal would be more common if the people who could do it weren't so damn lazy about their training. Took me only a few months once my power base was strong enough to turn into mine. Luffy is almost ready to learn how to do it himself and Sabo already knows how but his is aquatic so he rarely bothers. Oddly enough when I'm like this, seastone and the ocean have zero effect on me despite the fact I ate a devil fruit,"**explained Ace. **"Besides, this was the best way I could think of to take you flying."**

Whitebeard rather enjoyed the experience, once he was aware that it was Ace playing a prank on his siblings. They were flying to the closest island, so the crew would be able to catch up in a day or two.

Once they landed, Luffy slid down his brother's back and his wing to the ground and pulled out...a bucket of oil and a buffing cloth?

The older pirate enjoyed the peace and quiet while Luffy went to work buffing Ace's scales until they shown like gems. Ace sighed with relief and stretched out so Luffy could get all the spots, and his little brother paid extra attention to the horns. If Whitebeard didn't know any better he'd swear Ace was purring during the process.

"**So...should we give them another scare by swimming up to the ship or just wait for them to find us?"**

Whitebeard gave his son a Look.

"Do you _want_ to deal with sea kings?"

"**Two words. Conquerors. Haki. Dragons are apex predators and they natural give off the aura of kings. Add in the fact Shanks showed me how to properly _use_ it, and there's no way a sea king would be dumb enough to attack. Marines, on the other hand..."**

Ace yawned. The warm sun was putting him to sleep, especially after Luffy got done with that buffing cloth. Whitebeard leaned against his son's massive bulk, and Luffy stretched out behind Ace's head, shaded partially by the horns.

It took Whitebeard a moment to register that Ace was humming something.

"Shishishi... Ace is singing again!" said Luffy happily.

"Again?"

"He only really lets his abilities show with people he trusts to have his back. But he's too worried that once someone finds out who his dad was they'll turn on him for one reason or another. Once you have his loyalty it's yours for life so long as you never betray him. If he's humming that means he trusts you completely," explained Luffy. He pouted. "Ace only ever sings when he feels completely safe, and he's been silent since he fought Jinbei."

"_**Hey, I sing. I know there must have been some drunken singing on my birthday!"**_

"If you call _that_ singing," said Whitebeard amused.

"_**So, how long do you think it'll take the others to reach us?"**_

"I'd say about a day, maybe two," said Whitebeard. "This was the next island on the log pose, right?"

"_**Yeah, I made sure to follow the one Luffy had on his wrist," **_said Ace.

Ace took that opportunity to switch back to human form.

"Being off the ship is great! No dealing with the crazies, and I only have to deal with Luffy-logic while he runs off like an idiot for adventure on a new island," said Ace in relief.

Whitebeard laid back and relaxed. Now that Ace mentioned it, being almost alone on an island was rather relaxing. Ace even conjured up a nice lounge chair for him to sunbathe on.

The irritated expression on Marco's face when he found out it was just Ace playing a massive prank on the crew again was hilarious. They were so high strung about Pops being kidnapped it never occurred to them to look for Ace.


	8. Chapter 8

Ace was bored and decided to experiment with the potion ingredients he harvested whenever they visited another island. By this point he had an entire room to himself with a window (mostly to vent the smoke) that he secured with magic.

So you could imagine his irritation when, during the middle of his experiments (he was dressed as Doctor Pyrite because it helped him to focus, oddly enough) Luffy came in and surprised him, causing the wok to blow up and him with it.

Ace started coughing, and the second his airways cleared up he swore a blue streak. Luffy _knew_ not to open the door when he had that sign up!

"God-dammit Luffy this is why I made that sign! Now I have to start all over again!"

It took Ace a few seconds to register some very important things.

One: he was not on the _Moby Dick_ anymore or in his experiment room.

Two: Luffy was nowhere in sight.

Three: he didn't feel the 'trackers' he placed on his brothers and certain members of the Whitebeard pirates.

Four: There was someone with _his_ face staring at him with features filled with absolute shock and bewilderment, only his eyes were considerably more haunted and the tattoo on his left arm didn't have _ASL_. Instead it read _ASCE _with the "S" crossed out.

Ace's face twitched. He was going to strangle Luffy once this mess cleared up...fortunately the little idiot was rubber so it wouldn't kill him as long as he didn't use Haki to do it.

"Who the hell are you?! And why do you have my face?" said his doppelganger.

Face twitching with irritation, Ace sighed.

"I am going to strangle that rubber idiot when I get back."

The other Ace blinked.

"Rubber idiot? You mean Luffy?" he said suspiciously.

"I was experimenting with something and put a sign on the door that clearly stated _not_ to enter and the idiot did it anyway. He knows better than that!" said Ace exasperated.

"Who are you anyway?"

"I'm you, idiot. From an alternate timeline or parallel world," said Ace bluntly.

"Oh yeah? Prove it!" said his other self, not believing it.

"Your mother's name was Portagas D Rouge, your father was Gol D Roger, you got your ass kicked by Whitebeard within a day of beating Jinbei to a tie and your adopted grandfather is Monkey D Garp...who is a complete nutcase who thinks leaving a pair of young kids with bandits who wouldn't know how to raise a freaking plant was a brilliant move on top of throwing you at larger than normal animals in order to turn you into a marine," deadpanned Ace. "You were so full of yourself as a kid that you didn't really accept Luffy as a little brother until shortly after Sabo made the idiotic move of going in front of a Celestial Dragon's ship, when Luffy almost died as well because he went off to find one of the bigger animals solo."

His alternate paled.

Any doubts that this was another version of him died hearing that information, which was not something he would share with _anyone_. Not even Oyaji or the other division commanders knew about his early childhood. Never mind about Sabo or Luffy.

"How did you end up here?"

"I was messing around with some things I picked up on different islands to see what I could do with it, and Luffy surprised me at the worst time," explained Ace. "The type of herbal remedies I mess around with often have...explosive...results if you're not careful."

"Why would Luffy be with you? Didn't you leave him behind when you became a pirate? Are you a pirate?" asked his alternate.

Ace rubbed his eyes in irritation.

"Yes, I joined the Whitebeards and yes I am a pirate. As for Luffy, I took him and Sabo with me when I set sail after I robbed Shitty Gramps ship the last time he came to visit and 'train' us. You should have _heard_ the swearing he let off when he realized I raided his secret liquor cabinet again," grinned Ace. "Also, for the sake of avoiding headaches I'll go by Pyrite."

His alternate blinked.

"Pyrite?"

"Long story short, a certain blond asshole thought it was funny to trick me into taking a few exams in a Marine base and I walked out with three doctorates. Since I'm not an idiot I went by the name 'Pyrite D Ace' and the marines never even recognized me."

"Why Pyrite?" asked Portagas.

"Because it sounds like 'pirate' and it's the chemical name for a metal known as fool's gold. Though Sabo was the one to point out the irony of using that particular name considering who our father was," said Pyrite.

Portagas snickered. Then Pyrite's words registered.

"Wait... Your Sabo lived?"

"Would not surprise me in the least if yours did as well. From what I heard, Luffy's birth father was near the island when the Celestial Dragon arrived to do some recruiting. God know Sabo is one stubborn son of a bitch, so it wouldn't shock me in the _least_ if Dragon found him and decided to take him along," said Pyrite with a shrug. "Though there is a quick way to check."

Portagas had an expression of hope on his face that was almost painful. Pyrite reached into his special pocket and pulled out an odd ring.

He ran his finger along the edge, focusing on this world's Sabo.

Nothing happened.

"Well the good news is that Sabo definitely isn't dead. If he were, his spirit would have answered the summons. If I were you I'd check with the Revolutionaries to see if they know anyone fitting his description. Considering all the damage done to mine, odds are he's going to have quite a bit of scarring on the left side of his face," said Pyrite.

"Why them?"

"Luffy's dad is their leader, and like I said before he was on the island during the visit."

Portagas relaxed. Then he looked at the ring curiously.

"Can that thing summon anyone?"

"Only those that I can establish a connection to. I can't summon anyone at random withou the proper information. However summoning your mother so that you can meet her is definitely doable," said Pyrite.

He had summoned his mother in this life once Shanks gave her full name. Garp had only given him a partial, which made it impossible to summon her.

It was probably one of the rare times Pyrite sorely wished it was possible to punch a ghost.

Mostly because when he summoned Gol D Roger, it hadn't taken him more than three seconds to realize who the man had been in his previous life.

When he died in this world he was going to track Gol D Roger...or rather Sirius Orion Black...and beat the living shit out of the man for the headaches he caused.

Seriously, why the hell did Padfoot have to prank the _entire_ world by setting off the Age of Pirates because he was too lazy to find a potion to fix the illness he had? He should have _known_ that the remedies worked here as well as they had in their old lives from the fact that the Pepper-Up potion was still readily available, even if Shanks mostly only used it to cure hangovers.

The look on his father's face was priceless, especially once Roger realized who Ace was in his previous life. Hearing his godson lit into him for being a damn idiot was a rather...amusing...way to reunite after his carelessness got him killed last time.

(Shanks actually choked on his rum when he heard Ace loudly curse out his old captain, only to find Roger's ghost there trying to explain his actions. Ace was 'kind' enough to insure Shanks knew that it wasn't a drunken hallucination once he sobered up the next afternoon.)

Portagas looked like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, being able to actually _speak_ with his mother...even if she was a ghost. Finding out she never hated her son because her actions caused him to be born several months late, thus insuring her own death, seemed to ease a burden he hadn't realized he was even carrying.

The fact that there was a possibility Sabo was still alive didn't hurt either.

Portagas was trying desperately not to cackle, it would ruin the entire surprise.

When Pyrite suggested this, he had jumped at the chance to play a prank on the Whitebeards. Best of all it was impossible to tell them apart, because Pyrite had the same Haki Portagas did and was able to add a fake tattoo on his left arm to match the one Portagas had!

(On an unrelated note, Portagas would spend months playing around with the notebook of prank ideas that Pyrite left. The man was a pranking _genius_.)

* * *

"Ace? I though you were in the galley?" said Izou in confusion.

"What are you talking about? I was just in the training rooms until five minutes ago," said Portagas in mock confusion.

"No, I'm pretty sure I saw you in the galley. There aren't as many black holes on the ship like you," said Izou. It even _felt_ like Ace.

Portagas looked confused, but inwardly he was laughing his ass off. The idea of having two of him on the ship was going to be so much fun, especially since Pyrite had a way to hide his Haki.

For the next four days, Pyrite and Portagas drove the Whitebeards crazy...until Marco busted Pyrite and Portagas happened to be in the same area taking a narcolepsy-induced nap. Portagas woke up in time to find most of the crew ready to shoot his double.

"Well, it was fun while it lasted," he commented.

"Tell me about it," cackled Pyrite. "I haven't had this much fun since I finally managed to mimic Marco's voice well enough to fool his division and made them think a pineapple with one of his coats was him!"

Dead silence.

Thatch and a few others snickered at the mental image that presented.

"That never happened," said Marco, narrowing his eyes at Pyrite.

"Yeah, in this world. I got blasted because a certain idiot came in while I was messing around with volatile ingredients despite the sign on the door and figured I'd make the best of it until I either got pulled back or found a way home. Being able to prank my alternate's crew was just bonus."

"You make it sound like other worlds exist," said Marco.

Pyrite rolled his eyes.

"Can you think of a _better_ explanation for how there are two of Portagas D Ace with the exact same Haki signature?" he shot back.

"...He has a point," said Namur.

"Besides, knowing that pain in the ass he'll figure out soon enough the best way to track me down. Or I'll call my ride home."

"Pain in the ass?" said Portagas.

"Sabo."

"And how, exactly, are you planning to get home?" asked Whitebeard.

Pyrite grinned like the devil himself, causing an anticipatory look to cross Portagas face.

"JACK!"

For a split second nothing happened, until phoenix song filled the air. It was haunting and beautiful, and it took a few moments for the Whitebeard pirates to register the presence of an _actual_ phoenix flying over the ship.

Pyrite let out a sharp whistle, causing the mythical creature to bank and make a steep dive until it landed on his outstretched arm.

If one were to compare Marco to the real thing, Marco came in second place easily.

Portagas gaped.

"You...how?"

"Not my fault people don't know how to care for a newborn phoenix," snickered Pyrite.

Jack pecked at him it his beak. Hard.

"OW! Stupid feather-brain!"

Jack stuck out a leg. There was a letter attached to it.

Pyrite removed it and skimmed the message.

"Goddammit Luffy, I can't leave you for one freaking week and you get into trouble!" said Pyrite exasperated.

"What did that idiot do now?" asked Portagas, a look of empathy on his face.

"He was kidnapped," deadpanned Pyrite. "By third rate bounty hunters. Despite the fact that he doesn't even have an actual _bounty_ yet and is only associated with us through the fact he wears Pop's mark on his left shoulder."

Portagas groaned.

"How?"

"Knowing Luffy it could be anything from him following free meat to falling for a stupid trick," said Pyrite exasperated. "All I know is that on top of strangling that little shit I am going to put him through the one thing he's learned to absolutely dread."

"What's that?" asked Portagas.

"I'm telling Thatch to go vegetarian for three days."

Thatch perked up at his name.

"Vegetarian?"

"No meat and the only proteins come from things like beans, eggs and fish. Luffy doesn't mind eat his vegetables, but going three days without any real meat of any kind is absolute_ torture_ for him. I have a recipe book if you're interested."

Seeing the red-head's expression, Pyrite smirked. He shared a copy of the same recipe book he gave Thatch.

"Since that idiot little brother of mine has gotten in over his head, I have only one question for Oyaji."

Whitebeard looked at him with interest now.

"How would you like to be off the machines and off giving the Marines heart attacks instead of leaving your children to cause untold chaos in your name?"

Dead silence.

"You know a way to heal Oyaji so he won't need those machines anymore?" demanded Whiskey.

Pyrite smirked and pulled out a folder. She skimmed through it briefly before staring at him.

"How on earth did you get three doctorates in three different fields of medicine all on the same day?" she demanded.

"A pain in the ass tricked me into taking the exam because I knew so much about medicine and the Marines kept sending me in to take different tests. I only cottoned on when I realized I was taking the veterinarian's exam two days after showing off my knowledge as a surgeon. To be fair the only reason I don't have a dentist license is because I already had one for general surgery."

Free time, inability to stay asleep without potions to deal with the nightmares and a large bank account meant that Harry Potter had plenty of time to study whatever field of medicine caught his interest at the time.

Add in the fact he wasn't inclined to marry just to continue his family line and the knowledge Hermione wouldn't get on his case about getting a job if he was busy studying, and he had more than enough motivation to earn several doctorates _and_ become a fully trained Medi-Wizard.

The fact his knowledge applied in his new life meant he was able to breeze through the Marine's exam.

"Besides, it only took me three months after taking Oyaji's mark before he was off the machines and off most of his medication in my world. I see no reason not to help the one here when I know it would give the Marines and the World Government a collective heart attack knowing Whitebeard found a second wind and was joining his children in on the fun," said Pyrite cheekily.

It took a few moments for that to sink in, before Whitebeard settled the matter.

"Grahahahaha...spoken like one of my sons!"

"So long as your medical records match the one Pops has back in my world, I can have you drinking your children under the table in under a month, two at the most."

"How do we know you're telling the truth?" demanded Marco.

"I can cure his arthritis in under an hour and it only takes one dose. This also establishes the needed baseline so I know exactly how well he'll take to the medication, no matter how foul it tastes," said Pyrite promptly and without a single second of hesitation. "I had to trick Pops into drinking it last time because I didn't want anyone to know I was a licensed doctor."

By the time Pyrite returned to his own world, Whitebeard was already enjoying the fact he wasn't hooked up to so many machines by drinking most of his sons under the table...and for once his medical staff wasn't trying to confiscate his booze again.


	9. Chapter 9

Luffy did his best not to sniffle or cry. It had been several days since Ace somehow got blasted from the ship, and considering the nature of what he was doing at the time, Sabo's guess was that he got sent somewhere else for a bit.

He was probably off having an adventure of his own and would find his way home eventually.

Luffy had been eager to have an adventure of his own...except he ended up kidnapped.

He didn't know how long it had been, all he knew was that the people who had taken him were the sort of 'bad pirates' that Ace told him to avoid at all costs until he was bigger. They didn't care about adventures, or freedom. All they wanted was a lot of gold and treasure even if they had to hurt others to get it. Case in point, they kidnapped kids in order to ransom them or sell them as slaves.

Luffy was being ransomed, mostly because he had Whitebeard's mark on his shoulder and had been seen with one of their crew.

All he knew was that he wanted Ace right now. Or Sabo. He wasn't too picky on who.

He was about to fall partially asleep, which was difficult because of the fact he was cuffed in seastone and his leg had a nasty gash on it that looked _bad_ from the lessons Ace had given him. Wounds that had gunk in it and 'smelled funny' needed to be treated quickly before it the injury became something worse and they had to take the limb off. Luffy didn't want to lose his leg.

It was at the exact moment he was about to fall asleep that he felt it. A familiar 'thrum' in the back of his mind that made his magic dance with glee and happiness.

Luffy's eyes shot wide awake.

Ace was back! Better yet, he was close!

With all the energy he had left in him, Luffy sent out a mental plea for Ace to come quickly. He made sure to focus on his big brother and wish with all his might that Ace was in the cell with him...those jerks wouldn't stand a chance against his big brother!

His prayers were answered. A flash of fire appeared in his cell, along with an annoyed Ace and Jack.

Ace blinked at the sudden change of light, before he saw Luffy. He took _one_ look at the seastone around Luffy's wrists and the bad leg, before a pure murderous intent filled the air. But in his eyes, all Luffy saw was love and protectiveness.

"Are the ones who did this to you coming back?" he asked quietly.

Luffy nodded.

Ace gently transferred Jack to his wrist.

"Can you put some of your tears onto his leg? I can't gauge exactly how far the infection has spread."

Jack trilled, and pearly white tears began to fall on Luffy's leg. Blessed _relief_ from the pain it was in filled him, as Ace used the unlocking charm to undo the cuffs without the key.

Luffy didn't care how weak it made him look...he started bawling and quickly wrapped his arms around Ace's neck.

Ace hugged him tightly, rubbing his back and letting out that odd crooning noise he sometimes made when Luffy or Sabo had nightmares that said he was there and everything would be okay.

Once Luffy's tears weakened a bit, Ace debated on whether to send Luffy ahead or keep him close to see the end of his captors.

"Lu, do you think you can handle going straight to Sabo and the others, or do you want to stay with me while I burn this place to the ground?" he asked.

Luffy tightened his arms around Ace.

"You want to stay with me?"

Luffy nodded.

"Okay baby boy... just make sure to point out who did that to your leg so I can fry them up extra crispy, okay?" said Ace gently.

"Okay," said Luffy quietly.

Luffy kept his hold around Ace tight so he didn't fall off his brother's back, but loose enough that Ace would have no issue breathing or moving.

Hearing the sounds of the people who hurt him, Luffy stiffened.

Ace's eyes darkened.

It was time to show these bastard why it was never a good idea to tickle a sleeping dragon...let alone harm one of it's own.

"Shit...that brat escaped!"

"He can't have gone too far with that leg of his!"

"Search everywhere!"

The second the door opened...Ace flash fried _everyone_ within range.

Dead silence filled the air...as did the pissed off, murderous intent of one Ace D. Portagas. Forget Conqueror's Haki...these bastards were going to know _exactly_ how boned they were and remain concious for every _second_ of it. Ace didn't want them to pass out and miss even a fraction of his anger towards what they did to his little brother.

The closer they got to the door...the quicker the pirates realized something _bad_ had descended upon their operation and it wouldn't be satisified until each and every single one of them was dead.

Luffy whimpered once the sunlight hit his face, before relaxing. He was free, and Ace was back to teach these jerks a lesson.

Ace's murderous intent did not extend to the children. He merely directed them to rooms he already cleared before calmly moving them to the next one so he didn't lose track of them. Considering he was killing all the bad adults, the children were quick to follow orders.

Those that attempted to escape on sea soon found that there would be no salvation for them.

Ace flame roasted them in dragon form, before spotting a familiar ship heading their way.

Ace kept Luffy on his back as he went into 'doctor' mode and started treated anyone who was being held captive. Considering his dragon fire was hotter than his Devil Fruit powers, he had stuck to blowing flames onto those who had pissed him off so much...it was a good thing his devil fruit was flame based because it meant he obtained no damage from the trick.

Ace would only find out later that because of it and the fact that several of the people he set free saw his animagus form, that word had spread "Doctor Pyrite" had somehow managed to find and eat the mythical 'Dragon Devil Fruit', much like Marco had eaten the phoenix version. Ace nearly laughed himself sick when he heard about that, but at least now he had another way to 'separate himself from his pirate persona. After all, it was well known that a person couldn't eat two devil fruit powers and _live_.

* * *

Luffy whimpered. It had been almost two weeks since he was freed by Ace and he kept having nightmares. Every so often Ace would let him have the special potion that let him sleep without dreams.

The only thing that made it all bearable was the fact that Ace had declared that until Luffy was able to sleep normally again, "cuddle time" had been invoked.

Sabo once again declared Ace a total Tsundere, and glared at his elder brother for punching him.

Ace could play the big tough guy, but whenever Luffy needed him, his "dere" side came out.

Every time Luffy woke up from a nasty nightmare of being back there, he would only have to turn his head to the nearest source of warmth to find Ace right there, holding him tightly. And all he would have to do was cuddle against his big brother and let the warmth seep in to fall right back asleep.

It was because of that fact that the worst of the trauma caused by his kidnapping was starting to fade a little faster than normal. Ace didn't give a single damn about the fact Luffy was so clingy towards him. Far from it, his mother hen side had already kicked in.

Finally, two full months after the incident and being freed by Ace, Luffy managed to sleep an entire night without having to use his older brother as a teddy bear. He didn't say a single word about the fact Jack had taken to nesting over his bed to croon just in case he had another nightmare.

"So Ace...where exactly did you go anyway?" asked Sabo, now that Luffy was on the road to recovery.

"An alternate world where I didn't become a doctor but still joined the Whitebeards," said Ace absently. "So...basically what would have happened if I didn't have the extra knowledge I do."

Dead silence.

"Are you kidding me?" asked Sabo.

Ace turned to look at him.

"My alternate watched you 'die' that night you idiotically tried to cut across the Celestial Dragon's ship, and he turned his back on Luffy shortly after, which caused him to become badly injured. He also never bothered to rob Gramp's ship every time he was in port, and he basically ditched Luffy to Gramp's hellish training alone once he was seventeen. Also, it took a hundred days before he finally agreed to become a part of Pop's crew and he's never had a fishman as part of the Spades."

Sabo stared at him.

"How the hell did you figure out you were in an alternate timeline?"

"Because the first thing I saw when the smoke cleared was my alternate self. They were quick to believe my story when I healed Pops all over again."

Sabo snorted at that.

"What about me?"

"From what I can tell you were either killed, or more likely considering who we ran into shortly after the Gray Terminal was burned, taken in by Dragon as a member of the Revolutionaries," said Ace. "And if you remember the level of damage done to you, I wouldn't be shocked if you lost your memories at the very least."

Sabo winced at the reminder. Ace had thoroughly chewed his ass out for going in front of the Celestial Dragon's ship.

"So how did you get Luffy to stop having nightmares?" asked Sabo.

"Told him once he was able to sleep properly in his bed for a week I'd get him started on animagus training. Fun fact about magic...it's not hindered by seastone cuffs," said Ace.

Ace had held a seastone necklace in his hand...and showed Luffy how his arm _still_ turned scaly and dragon-ish despite the draining effects seastone had on him.

Knowing that the animagus transformation (even a partial) would allow him to still be able to fight even with a seastone cuff had helped Luffy's nightmares immensely.

* * *

Luffy and Sabo were trying hard not to snicker at the expressions on the other pirate's faces when they realized what it was that Ace was humming under his breath.

At some point Ace had introduced the concept of 'musicals' to the crew to kill the boredom of sailing on the sea. It had taken off pretty quick, likely because one of the first ones he introduced them to was "Les Miserables". The plot alone had gotten their interest, never mind the actual _songs_.

The source of the brother's amusement was the fact Ace was making a lot of meat pies, and several of the other crew members had gone missing earlier and no one could find them for _hours_.

Why was this amusing one might ask? Ace had just put on a new musical called "Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street".

And the song he just so _happened_ to be humming while cooking the same pies from the musical was "A Little Priest".

Considering the content of the musical the night before, and the fact certain members of the crew were _missing_...well, one could hardly blame some of the more paranoid members of the crew for freaking out a little bit.

Seeing Luffy eating the meat pies with a gusto, when the crew had seen Ace cut up some unidentified meat made a few others look a tad green.

"Alright Ace, where did you stash the missing crew members?" demanded Thatch, a bit amused at the other's reactions. So few people believed cooks to be threats...he found it hilarious to see the other members of the crew giving him wary looks while butchering meat after hearing that musical.

"I may or may not have bribed Izou with the agreement he could take me out on a shopping spree for some new clothes after my favorite shirt developed a hole I didn't feel like fixing so long as he could hide a couple of the more annoying idiots," said Ace cheekily.

Thatch guffawed.

"You are _evil_."

"Can you blame me for having fun trolling the rest of the crew?" said Ace cheekily.

A week later when they made port, Ace honored his agreement with Izou by letting the man drag him from store to store to update his wardrobe.

Since Ace's "alter ego" dressed a bit nicer than his pirate one, Izou made sure to take Ace to some of the nicer stores.

_On the Moby Dick..._

Izou was in a very good mood after the minor shopping spree. The change in Ace's appearance with the proper clothes was shocking.

If Izou didn't know any better, he would think Ace was the son of a well bred Noble. A minor hair cut to clean up the split ends and dragging Ace to clean up his nails had also straightened up his appearance.

Very few of the crew bothered to learn anything about make-up or making themselves more presentable.

Ace, on the other hand, tended to humor Izou when it came to make-up and other little tips. The older man had been delighted when Ace came to him for help to learn more about hiding his freckles and using foundation. He had made do with half-learned lessons from Makino back on their home island before.

(Ace now had a small make-up bag filled with _quality_ supplies that wouldn't clog his pores or leave any discolorations.)

"Ace...what the hell did Izou do to you?" asked Sabo twitching. If he didn't know any better he would swear Ace was of Noble blood, rather than the son of the Pirate King.

"You don't like it?" asked Ace.

"Shishishi... Ace looks like a real professional!" said Luffy proudly. Ace gently ruffled his hair.

"Just wait Lu... you'll be the next one to go with Izou to get some new clothes."

Luffy looked at Izou.

"Can you make me look as nice as Ace?" he asked curiously.

Izou beamed at him.

"I don't see why not. I've always been curious to see what you would look like without that scar under your eye anyway," said Izou.


	10. Chapter 10

"You're not going to start bawling because Luffy is finally setting off on his own now, are you?" asked Sabo suspiciously.

"Hell no! ...I may be getting black out drunk with Shanks and Pops later though," said Ace sheepishly.

Sabo snickered.

It was the big day. Luffy had just turned seventeen, and as agreed he was setting off on his own to become a pirate captain with Pop's blessings.

Luffy kept getting congratulations and all sorts of often useless advice, but Ace kept getting commiserating looks from the rest of the crew. Especially those who had families out there.

Everyone knew Luffy was Ace's baby. Ace was such a mother hen sometime around his little brother, and treated him more like a son than a sibling at times. If the age gap were a little bigger, Shanks had little doubt Luffy would have been calling Ace "papa" instead of him.

Still Ace had prepared his baby brother as best he could for the big day, though he did get a tad misty eyed when he realized the day Luffy was finally setting off on his own was drawing far too close.

Though Ace still smirked when he remembered Shanks' expression upon realizing that the fire-user had given Luffy an actual _ship_ for his birthday, even if he had remodeled it slightly since he had spare time and a decent workshop.

Shanks had been so peeved because it was going to be a pain in the _ass_ to top that sort of gift.

He had settled on sharing sake with Luffy to signify that whatever crew he came up with would be allies with the infamous Red Haired crew. Pops had opted to give Luffy a spare flag in case he ran into trouble once he reached the Grand Line again and the knowledge that if something happened, he and his crew would always be welcomed as part of the Whitebeard pirates. Luffy might wear his tattoo on his left shoulder with pride, but he also wanted to make _his_ name known to the bigger players before he let people know he was one of Whitebeard's sons.

After all, if the Marines knew one of the Whitebeard pirates had struck out with Pop's blessing, they might send the bigger guns after him and wipe out whatever fledgling crew he could create.

"Do you have everything?" asked Ace.

It was hard to believe they were back on Dawn Island, but Luffy was adamant about starting out from the very bottom. The irony being that Luffy was likely to overpower any real players in the East Blue, since very few even _knew_ what Haki was, much less had any training.

(And that was before Luffy started dipping into his more shocking bag of tricks when it came to his magic. Ace still wasn't sure why sharing his blood with Luffy and Sabo had given them magical abilities, but he wasn't complaining overly much.)

"Do you have the _Romance Dawn_?" asked Ace.

Luffy proudly pulled out the odd bottle Ace had given him once they reached Dawn island. Inside was a ship gently rocking on the limited amount of water inside. Closer inspection revealed it was the _Romance Dawn_, shrunk to the size of a model ship.

Ace had waited until they were back on Dawn island to shrink it into the bottle, because they had used it to get past the Calm Belt.

Since he did have free time, Ace had made the ship far superior to anything found on the East Blue, including the special coating that allowed the ship to go underwater however briefly and the seastone coating to deal with any sea kings they ran into.

The medical bay was fully stocked, the galley was cleaned and the freezer was fully operational.

Inside the captain's quarters was the old flag belonging to the Spade Pirates (it hung on the ceiling above the hammock) several pictures hung on the walls with Luffy in various scenes with his brothers, the Whitebeard pirates and the Red Haired pirates.

The navigator's room held everything that one would need to survive the Grand Line until Luffy reached the best shipwrights in Paradise.

Thanks to Ace's witchcraft, the ship could hold at least twenty people comfortably and enough food to keep the blackhole known as Luffy's stomach happy for a month.

(Ace couldn't wait for Luffy to discover the _other_ surprise. He had left the _Dusk to Dawn_ hidden in the cargo hold and Luffy knew how to pilot it using the special runes engraved on the box that heated the air up to make it fly. Shanks was going to cuss him out _good_ once he found out that was left on the ship.)

And all Luffy would have to do was break the bottle near the water to release the _Romance Dawn_ from inside.

Right before Luffy got on the tiny ship that the mayor had said he could use once he started his journey as a pirate, he dashed back towards Ace.

"I...I'm going to miss you, Ace-nii."

Ace would adamantly claim he was not crying his ass off when he hugged Luffy back and he would smack Sabo for any claims to the contrary. At least he knew Coral and Finn would find Luffy sooner rather than later. They were currently investigating something for Jimbei regarding an all Fishman crew in the East Blue.

Watching Luffy get sucked into a whirlpool, Ace had to groan.

"Only Luffy would fight off a sea king on his first day as a real pirate only to get sucked into a whirlpool."

"Do you think he's okay?"

"It's Luffy. Everyone knows the gods protect fools, small children and people who don't know when to give up."

Sabo thought that one over and snorted in agreement.

Sabo looked at the small slip of paper he kept safe in the bracelet on his wrist. It looked perfectly ordinary, but those who knew what it was would identify it as a Vivre paper.

This one was tied to Luffy. Ace had them made for all three of them, as well as Coral and Finn. Sabo had called him a mother hen, but they all appreciated having a way to tell the condition of everyone else just at a glance.

Considering it was still intact, Sabo could only conclude the little idiot was fine and likely having the time of his life.

Sabo looked at Ace. Ace looked right back.

"So... as we agreed then?"

"Just remember to call regularly," said Ace.

Sabo wanted to join the Revolutionaries, but had agreed to hold off until Luffy set off on his own.

Now that Luffy was about to become a proper pirate captain, Sabo was going to meet up with Dragon...who happened to be Luffy's biological father.

"You have my Snail number memorized."

"For the love of the gods! I pity the others when you get back if your mother hen tendencies have been overclocked because Luffy just set off!"

"You take that back!"

"NEVER!" shouted Sabo.

The two went at it like idiots, but there wasn't any real heat behind their punches and kicks. Just their way of reassuring each other that no matter how far they were apart, they were still brothers.

* * *

Ace was visiting with Shanks when Mihawk happened to show up...with a new bounty poster.

The grin on Ace and Shanks' faces couldn't be wiped off with a sandblaster.

"Yes! That little idiot is already kicking ass and taking names and it hasn't even been a month!" cackled Ace.

"What's his crew name?" asked Shanks just as eagerly.

"The Straw Hat pirates, officially," said Mihawk.

Shanks was already crowing about the name, partially because he knew what inspired it.

"Let's party!" cheered Shanks. That set off his crew who cheered with him.

Ace was already bringing out the snail and dialing up his little brother.

The mood got even _more_ upbeat when Yasopp found out his son Usopp had joined Luffy's crew as the sniper. You could hear the pride in his voice as he talked to his son over the snail.

* * *

_In the East Blue, on the _Merry Go_..._

Nami was staring at the two hammerhead fishmen incredulous.

"You actually want to let _them_ join the crew?!" she demanded.

Considering her past history with fishmen, it was understandable why she wasn't happy.

"Shishishi...Finn and Coral already told Ace-nii that they'd join my crew so that they could keep an eye on me for him. Besides, Finn is a registered surgeon and Coral is really good at scouting."

"How did you meet the captain?" asked Zoro.

"His brother basically abducted us from an island that discriminated against us for our species. Then Finn found out Luffy's brother was the same doctor that he had been fanboying about for months and Ace agreed to train Finn as a surgeon," said Coral. "Though I still don't know how they fooled the marines long enough for Finn to get his license."

"Shishishi..."

"So you told his brother you'd keep an eye on him?" said Usopp.

"Ace is a total mother hen, and Luffy is practically his baby," said Finn snickering. "Knowing some of his old crew was keeping an eye out for Luffy while letting him grow as a captain eased a lot of his paranoia."

"Besides, have you _met_ Luffy? He gets into trouble just by breathing! You'll need all the help you can get to keep him from giving you all gray hairs before you're thirty!" said Coral.

Luffy pouted when none of his new crew bothered to deny that assessment.

Nami had a headache, but at least these two weren't part of her childhood trauma regarding fishmen.

Far from it...they hadn't hesitated to abandon Arlong to protect Luffy and help break him out of the concrete.

All while cussing him out about being so damn reckless and how someone named Ace would give him an earful if he died so quickly to a low-ranked idiot on the East Blue.

* * *

Ace was about to head to the kitchens when he smelled blood.

Without thinking twice, he raced to the source...and found a barely alive Thatch on the ground with injuries that could prove fatal if they weren't treated immediately.

"Jack!" he shouted, and his familiar appeared in seconds.

The phoenix immediately started crying on the worst of the wounds, stabilizing Thatch enough for Ace to switch into his Doctor Pyrite persona.

Some might worry about multiple personality disorder, but that was the least of Ace's problems considering the amount of baggage he brought with him from his past life. Besides, it helped him to hide the fact he had an alter ego that _wasn't_ wanted by the Marines.

It took Ace five hours to properly stabilize Thatch, and it would take a while before the older man was able to function normally again. But his biggest concern was finding out what the hell happened to his friend.

Did a marine sneak on the ship and find a window of opportunity to strike against Oyaji? If so, then why did they target Thatch instead of someone like Marco?

While everyone waited with baited breath for Thatch to wake up and tell them what happened, Ace started snooping.

Perhaps it was a left over from his life as Harry Potter, but he couldn't let a mystery like this go, especially when it involved one of his 'claimed' people being seriously hurt from unknown causes.

It took him four hours to find out there was someone who was missing, along with one of the smaller ships.

Ace narrowed his eyes, and quietly asked the _Moby Dick_ what time Teach left the ship with one of the scouting vessels.

And quietly cursed, because the time-frame was well within the window of margin for the one who attacked Thatch to leave without anyone the wiser. Considering the possibility of a traitor, the other division commanders had jumped on the idea of a roll call to find out who was missing. Marco took over for Thatch, since the other man was still out cold under a medicated coma.

Ace was pissed.

"Does anyone know where Teach is?" he demanded, his ire clear.

Whitebeard was _pissed_. It was quickly becoming apparent that Teach was almost certainly the one behind Thatch's near-death condition and was a traitor. For one of his sons, who had been with the crew even during the days of Gol D. Roger, to betray him like this was unthinkable.

Thatch only woke up long enough to confirm Ace's suspicions about Teach. Apparently he had been attacked for the devil fruit he had recently found.

Ironically the joke was on Teach. Ace had been curious to see if he could find out more about logia-type Devil Fruits, and had asked to borrow it from Thatch. So long as even a part of it was eaten, the fruit's powers would still be transferred to it's new host.

However, since Thatch wanted to prank anyone who wanted to try the fruit's power out, they had made a perfect copy using some rotten fruit that was transfigured to _look_ like the devil fruit. Since the common theme to eating them was that they tasted _awful_, and no one could adequately describe the taste itself with any degree of accuracy, it was questionable if anyone would know the fruit was a fake.

Which meant Blackbeard had stolen the fake fruit and nearly killed Thatch...for nothing. And now that his true nature had been exposed, there was no way for him to get the real one.

Ace was still going to make an example out of the bastard though, when he caught up to him. He had a personal hatred of traitors and Blackbeard had ended up as number one on his personal shit list.


	11. Chapter 11

If Ace were his 'alternate' counterpart, he would have gone after Blackbeard alone to put the traitor down.

Ace was not like most pirates.

Within two weeks of Blackbeard's betrayal, a special "wanted poster" was distributed among the Grand Line, both in Paradise and the New World.

The Marines bounty system was regarded as more of a list of the "Who's Who" on the seas among pirates. The higher the bounty, the more likely the person on the poster was a major player. It was rare for the big names to ever be turned in to the Marines.

It was one thing to have the Marines after you. That was par for the course if you were a real pirate.

It was an entirely different matter if everyone and their grandmother knew that you had _royally_ pissed off someone like Whitebeard, who was well known and respected (or feared) enough that they would make their ire towards you public.

Whitebeard didn't have an issue with his sons or daughters leaving the crew or trying to make a name for themselves, like Luffy had. Regardless of what happened, they were still his children.

However the fact that Teach almost killed Thatch over a devil fruit and abandoned them like that pissed him off. And as the commander of the second division, it was mostly Ace's responsibility to hunt the bastard down and make an example of him.

It was up to Ace whether he could horrifically maim Teach to make an example of him (not likely), or straight up kill him.

Hence the 'special bounty' posted by Ace with Whitebeard's approval. It contained a certain amount of gold...enough to tempt most of the weaker pirates into acting as informants...and the promise that the Whitebeards would owe whoever helped Ace track Blackbeard down to kill him. It wouldn't be on par with a _major_ favor, but it could lead to a weaker crew being allowed to join a bigger player like the Whitebeards.

And _that_ was enough to get more than a few pirates all too happy to start sharing information on where to find Marshall D. Teach.

Just to be on the safe side, Ace called Sabo and Luffy to warn them about what Teach had done.

Luffy, who had some of the best instincts Ace had seen in a while, had never trusted Teach. In fact he had gone out of his way to _avoid _the man if he could.

Just as an added precaution, Ace also let people know that Teach had done something to piss off "Doctor Pyrite". Since that was his cover as a legitimate doctor, that meant he could listen in to the Marines and not get busted.

What he found out only raised his ire towards Teach.

That bastard was openly working for the Marines! Ace had the sneaking suspicion that if he hadn't cast the fidelius on the fact he was Gold Roger's only remaining heir, Teach would have used that as a bartering tool with the marines.

It wouldn't be that hard for the traitor to know Ace would track him down, and the capture of the 'son of Gold Roger' would give Teach a major bartering tool. Enough to even catapult him to Warlord if he were inclined.

And Sabo said that his paranoia over people out to get him was ridiculous!

* * *

_With Luffy_

"What the heck is that thing?" asked Nami incredulous.

Luffy was dragging some strange doll out from his quarters.

"Oh, are you going to start them on the special lessons?" said Coral when she saw what he brought out.

"Yup! We have a bit of time before we hit the Grand Line, so we might as well get started just in case," said Luffy.

"Special lessons?" said Sanji, already having a bad feeling about this.

"Ace-nii said it's important for everyone on the crew to know certain life-saving procedures by heart...especially when you have devil fruit users on board," explained Luffy. "He made sure everyone at least had the basics down just in case."

Nami was looking at him with interest now.

"What sort of procedures?"

"How to save someone who is choking or recently spent a bit too much time in the water and isn't breathing. It also works for those who get electrocuted or had a massive shock that stops the heart," said Coral, going back to her book. "It's mostly basic first aid with a few tricks Ace knew thrown in."

"I'll be supervising," said Finn.

While he did have medical knowledge, they really needed a proper doctor on the crew. Finn specialized in opening people up, but a proper doctor could prescribe medications that could avoid such a scenario. Prevention was the best medicine, after all.

Seeing he had the attention of the crew, Luffy fell into a familiar lecturing stance. He had seen Ace teach other members of the crew so often he knew the procedure by heart and could at least teach his own crew the basics. Especially since Finn was supervising to make sure they understood the lesson.

(It said a lot that Ace could teach Luffy how to perform CPR...and show him how to teach others without completely botching it.)

Nami, unsurprisingly, was the first to master the rather simple lesson plan Luffy had laid out. Then again she already knew the bare minimum, and just needed a bit of fine-tuning.

Zoro kept putting too much pressure on the special doll Ace had given Luffy, which he used for demonstrations. If someone was able to perform CPR correctly, the area under the hands would turn green indicating the required amount of pressure was used.

Too much and it turned from red (meaning a cracked rib) to black (indicating that they had broken something and causing a potential fatal injury).

The doll was specially designed to light up depending on the amount of pressure required for an average human adult. Luffy had two others, one for the average fishman and another for children under twelve.

Usopp was the second to get it right, though his success rate was seven times out of ten.

Sanji was enthusiastic (mostly at the thought of mouth-to-mouth with a pretty girl) but could only get it six times out of ten.

Nami looked at Luffy oddly.

"Your brother insisted you learn this?" she asked.

Luffy, Coral and Finn snickered.

"Sabo tricked Ace into taking the exams to get an official license as a doctor, and he walked out with _three_ of them in the same week. All of them in vastly different fields," said Coral.

"Ace is a big believer in sharing life-saving knowledge, since it means less risk for the crew once they reach an island. A bit of knowledge now could mean the difference between life and death," said Finn. "Even the Whitebeard pirates and the Red Haired pirates took the lessons Ace held on how to perform CPR, as well as basic field medic knowledge. More than one pirate has been grounded because they didn't care for a wound properly and stuck suffering from an infection."

"Ace-nii made these special dolls to make it easier for people to learn."

"You three certainly seem to love this Ace guy," said Zoro.

"Again, Luffy was practically raised by Ace growing up and he gave us a chance to experience real freedom. Never mind what he did for Finn...do you have any idea how hard it would have been for a fishman to become certified as a full surgeon, considering the way the World Government treats us?" said Coral.

"So where are we going next?" asked Usopp.

"Loguetown, where Gold Roger was born and executed," said Nami. "We need to pick up supplies before we hit the Grand Line."

Coral and Finn shared a look. Considering Nami had been sticking around the East Blue for so long, odds are she wouldn't know what to get for the Grand Line.

Like a log pose, for instance.

"You get everything for the navigation side of things Nami. We'll get the essentials for the Grand Line. There are a few tricks that will make our lives easier that only someone who's spent time there would know," said Coral.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that the special log poses were stashed in the other ship," said Luffy.

"Special log poses?" repeated Nami.

"Other ship?" said Usopp.

"Ace gave me his old ship from before he joined the Whitebeard pirates as a birthday present...mostly to annoy Shanks and Oyaji since they would have to one-up him. It's been specially treated to handle life in the Grand Line, particularly life in Paradise, which is where most pirates enter when they go over Reverse Mountain."

Nami twitched.

"You already had a ship? Then why didn't you use that instead of the _Merry_?" demanded Nami.

"Because it's impossible to sail that thing with only one or two people," said Finn. "I've done it with Ace before...mostly because he knows how to cheat and make it easier, but Luffy has never been on it without Ace and Sabo."

"Besides, after we helped Usopp, we got the _Merry_ and it's just the right size for our crew since the _Romance Dawn_ is at least half a size bigger. Once we get more members, it'll be easier to maintain," explained Luffy.

"Not to mention the _Romance Dawn_ was personally retrofitted by Ace to survive the Grand Line until we reached the shipwrights at the end of Paradise. It would be something of a waste to bring it out on one of the Blues," said Coral.

"Exactly how big is this ship?" asked Usopp.

Luffy went to his room. Ace had given him the blueprints just in case he needed to do some repairs.

Sanji's usual cigarette fell out of his mouth.

"How big is this kitchen?!" he said in shock.

"It's big enough to feed three black holes, and I know for a fact Ace personally insured all the equipment was brand new and the surfaces sterilized to insure no one would get sick," said Coral.

"And that's not getting into the infirmary, which is equipped to handle at least a major operation on top of having three beds for others, and an isolation area," added Finn happily.

"Don't forget the special training room!" said Luffy. "I know Ace added a few weights and other equipment in there, and the navigator's area has a ton of chart paper and special tools needed to write new maps."

Nami, Usopp, Sanji and Zoro stared at them.

"This Ace certainly went over the top for this ship he gave you," said Nami.

"Again, he was trying to one-up two Yonko, one of which happens to be the strongest man alive. Shanks was so irritable with him!" snickered Coral.

"Knowing him he also left another surprise, just to piss off Shanks," said Finn with a laugh.

Nami was twitching.

"Are you telling me you have a good relationship with a Yonko_?"_ she hissed.

Even Arlong would have backed off _very_ quickly if he had seen a Yonko's mark. Only an idiot would dare to wear their mark if they weren't actually associated with a stronger crew, especially if they were going to the Grand Line.

As one, Luffy, Coral and Finn revealed the mark of Whitebeard rather proudly. Suddenly the bandanna Luffy wore on his left shoulder made far too much sense.

"Oyaji didn't mind the fact that I was leaving to become a captain in my own right, and said that if anything happened I was free to bring my crew to join his family," said Luffy. "But I wanted to make a name in my own right, so I decided to hide it."

"Just a tattoo isn't enough to convince people you're an ally of Whitebeard though," said Zoro.

Luffy pulled out the small trunk from his room. Inside it was a neatly folded pirate flag with an unmistakable jolly roger.

It was the flag of Whitebeard, and underneath it was the flag of the Red Haired pirates.

Nami's twitching got worse. Then she sighed, because at least now she knew that they had strong allies in case things went completely FUBAR against a stronger pirate.

Their small crew couldn't handle any of the big players in the Marines who would attack if they saw Whitebeard or Shanks' mark alongside their own. So the fact that Luffy kept this hidden made perfect sense, at least until they trained up a lot more.

However in areas where pirates congregated in large numbers, showing this sort of mark was akin to telling people not to mess with them.

"Who is this Ace guy anyway?" asked Usopp.

"The Second division leader of the Whitebeard pirates," said Coral. "And the only licensed doctor among the main crew."

Whitebeard had a lot of nurses, but most doctors with any skill were reasonably reluctant to leave their cushy life for that of a pirate.

"So if his brother is a doctor, then how skilled is Luffy?" asked Usopp.

"Rank three battlefield medic," said Finn promptly. "Coral is a Rank three as well."

Dead silence.

"What's a rank three?" asked Zoro.

"It means Luffy is trained to handle things like broken limbs, minor poisoning, and most of the common wounds among pirates. It also means he has been certified when it comes to finding basic herbal remedies and plants to deal with injuries in the field," said Coral. "Which means if something bad happens and Finn is unavailable, Luffy is able to perform treatment until you reach the ship or to a real doctor."

"_Luffy_ is a certified medic?"

"Think of him a mid-level nurse with emphasis on herbal remedies rather than prescription drugs. If you smell something weird from the room next to his, then odds are he's brewing some remedies for later use," said Finn.

Luffy was actually a natural potionsmaster, to Ace's amusement and delight. Which meant Ace had drilled as many recipes as he could into Luffy's head and given him an extra copy of the field guide he had made with Sabo's help with common plants and their uses.

After the incident when they were captured, Luffy actually paid attention to Ace's lessons on battlefield medicine and spells.

Hence why he was a rank three, which was as high as one could go without any proper medical training.

On the plus side, the rookies of the crew felt reassured that Luffy was a lot more competent as a captain and a pirate than they originally thought. It meant he had an actual brain and knew how to use it, despite his usual behavior.


	12. Chapter 12

It had been four months since Luffy set off as an official pirate captain, and right now he was seriously considering calling Ace in. Nami's condition was getting much worse and Finn didn't have the resources or training to know how to help her beyond the basics. The potion Luffy had given her was the only thing keeping her alive at the moment, and it had nearly given the crew a heart attack because it made Nami as still as death.

Which was kind of the point, considering it was called "Draught of the Living Death", but still. At the very least, it put Nami's body into a form of stasis until they could find someone who could identify what was wrong with her long enough to heal her. Luffy had the counter potion already made for when she could be treated.

At first he was hopeful seeing the number of doctors on the fake pirate's ship, but it was pretty clear this jerk wouldn't let them treat Nami.

Then he saw a sight that made him almost cry in relief.

"ACE!"

Hearing Luffy cry out that particular name had the rest of the crew going out to finally see what the guy looked like.

It was a young man not even twenty, wearing what could only be a doctor's coat and some glasses. He had gray eyes, neat black hair kept back in a simple ponytail, and tan skin. His clothing was of someone well off, but well loved.

He turned at the voice and grinned.

"Luffy!"

Their captain stretched, uncaring of who saw, and practically rammed into Ace's stomach. He wrapped his arms around his older brother at least twice over.

"What's the matter Lu?" said Ace. He could tell his brother was stressed.

"Nami's sick and we had to give her that special potion to put her in stasis," he explained.

"This is your brother?" said Vivi.

"Pyrite D. Ace, at your service madam," said Ace.

"I thought it was Portagas?" said Zoro.

"I'll explain later, with less witnesses," said Luffy.

"Pyrite...not _the_ Doctor Pyrite?!" said Vivi, hope sparking in her chest.

"Come on Lu, go get your friend and I'll see what I can do. If nothing else I'll bribe the crazy old bat on the mountain for some of her medicine."

Ace frowned the second he saw Nami's condition.

"What were her symptoms?"

Finn listed them without hesitation.

"It sounds like one of the extinct diseases. I don't have any remedies on hand that can handle that...maybe old Kureha might have the cure," said Ace.

Hope lit in Luffy's heart as he carefully picked Nami up onto his back. Fortunately thanks to the potion, she was stable.

* * *

_A few hours later..._

The first thing Nami saw when she woke up was a rather handsome young man wearing a doctor's coat with glasses.

"Oh good, you're awake," he said calmly.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Doctor Pyrite," he said calmly.

Nami stared.

"You mean the famous doctor who went in and got three licenses to practice different fields of medicine on the same week?" she said faintly.

She could already see their limited funds dropping like a stone already. Doctors, especially ones as skilled as Doctor Pyrite, were _expensive_.

"Ace!"

Doctor Pyrite brightened.

"Your navigator is fine, Lu. She's still a bit groggy considering the potion you put her under, but she should make a full recovery."

Nami stared.

"_This_ is your brother?!"

Luffy happily hugged his older brother, who looked more indulgent than anything.

"Ace-nii agreed to take on Doctor Kureha's apprentice for a few months in exchange for saving you," siad Luffy.

"Chopper is both adorable and skilled. I have no doubt he would become an excellent doctor for you Luffy."

Nevermind that Ace would feel a lot better if he personally trained the doctor on Luffy's crew. He had high standards after all.

"Ace, why are you on Drum island anyway?" asked Luffy. He had been so worried about Nami that he forgot to ask.

Ace's face darkened.

"I'm tracking that bastard Blackbeard. The only reason I'm still here is because I got slightly side-tracked when I met Kureha's apprentice Chopper. Then I saw your sail and headed down the mountain to meet you," said Ace.

"Is Thatch..."

"Thatch is both alive and is already back in the kitchen," said Ace.

Thatch was beyond pissed at what Teach did, but took solace in the fact that the minor prank Ace played on the crew resulted in the bastard losing far more than he gained. Not only was his true nature known to the crew and their allies now, but he had failed to acquire the logia power he so coveted.

Ace didn't know if it was possible to destroy a devil fruit power...but he was going to make damn sure someone _else_ got it before Teach ever did if he couldn't destroy it.

_An hour later..._

"Explain how exactly you managed to convince _the_ Doctor Pyrite to be a temporary part of our crew," said Vivi twitching.

"Fire Fist Ace is too noticeable and he's already driven Blackbeard into a corner because he set that bounty on him. Teach is now persona-non-grata on Whitebeard and Shanks' territory, since I made it known that we would pay big for information that leads to his death or capture. Pirates might not sell each other out to Marines because it runs the risk of being captured themselves, but a favor from Whitebeard on top of a monetary reward is more than enough incentive to pick up a snail and call a number. I've basically unleashed an untold number of informants that Blackbeard can't track against him," explained Ace. "However if words reaches him that the Second Division commander of the Whitebeards is in the area, he might try to run or set up an ambush."

"I see," said Vivi.

"However it's well known Doctor Pyrite has no issue buying passage with respectable pirate crews, since it's cheaper than actually buying a ship or paying a crew. It's gotten to the point that the Marines gave Doctor Pyrite an 'official' flag in exchange for him treating their men for free. In exchange they'll look the other way to any ships flying it...within reason," said Ace.

Luffy looked at his brother.

"They gave you a flag?"

"It was shitty Gramps' idea, apparently," said Ace dryly. "So long as Doctor Pyrite agrees to heal their men for a massive discount, they agree to look the other way. And since the Straw Hats are still considered a 'low level' threat, despite the bounties they have on them, odds are most Marine ships will ignore it if it's flying my flag."

Luffy shuddered at the idea of Garp.

He did care about his grandpa, but the man was a complete nutcase who went about showing his concern for his grandsons in a way that left them traumatized for _life_.

* * *

"Well Chopper, I have good news. You're a relatively healthy example of the native reindeer species, though a tad underweight. A few good meals should add a bit more muscle definition to you," said Ace.

"Um...are you sure your brother will be okay out there?" asked Chopper.

"I doubt that pathetic fake king would be able to defeat someone who's survived in the New World for over five years. And Luffy hasn't even begun to use Haki just yet," said Ace dismissively.

Wapol was a complete joke compared to some of the people on the Grand Line. The only reason he hadn't been offed yet was because he was a Royal like Vivi.

Sure enough, Wapol and his more annoying minions went flying.

"So are you going to join Luffy's crew or what? I can tell you right now, he won't think any less of you for being a reindeer. After all, I trained Finn up to be a licensed surgeon despite the prejudice the World Government has against Fishmen."

Chopper looked positively adorable with how shy he was.

"You really think I could be the ship's doctor?"

"So long as you're competent, Luffy will gladly take you on. Besides, Finn would rather be the ship's surgeon anyway. Mixing remedies makes him sneeze something awful," said Ace cheerfully.

That wasn't getting into the fact that Ace would be joining them for a bit.

Traveling on his own was fine, but it would be pretty hard to track down Blackbeard if people started talking about Fire Fist Ace being in the area.

Teach was one of those who hadn't been told that "Doctor Pyrite" and "Fire Fist Ace" were actually the same person. And with the fidelius up and running, Ace would have had to tell him personally. So he wouldn't know to run if he heard that Doctor Pyrite was traveling with a rookie crew and just _happened_ to be in the area.

From what he could figure out, Teach was traveling _roughly_ on the same path as Luffy's crew was. Which means he'd have a better chance of running into the bastard if he stuck with his little brother. So long as their log pose didn't deviate from the one Nami was using, he had a good feeling about finding the prick.

(When he did find Teach, he wasn't going to give the traitor a chance to pull out some underhanded tactic like calling on the Marines to capture him. He was going to outright kill the bastard, even if it meant using the same spell that killed his parents and so many others in his last life as Harry Potter. Whether he put the traitor through the cruciatus first was up for debate at the moment.)

"Look on the bright side...if you do travel with Luffy, then it means I can test your medical knowledge and improve your skill as a doctor," said Ace.

"Really!?" said Chopper excitedly.

Ace chuckled. The little guy was just like a kid... he knew Chopper would get along great with Luffy. And much to his amusement, Chopper agreed to act as the official Doctor on the crew, while leaving all surgery related details to Finn. To be fair, Chopper's hooves didn't really make it easy to handle a knife and he usually stayed in his smaller form. Not to mention he had spent years learning how to be a doctor.

(Ace found it amusing that Chopper ended up taking lessons from _Luffy_ regarding potions and herbal remedies. The little guy was going to fit in perfectly with this crew.)

* * *

_A few days later..._

"Yo, Lu! Want to try out the _Path to Dawn_?" Ace called out.

"_Path to Dawn_?" repeated Nami.

Luffy was at Ace's side in seconds, as was an amused Coral.

"Where did you put the _Romance Dawn_ anyway?" asked Coral.

"It's in my room on a special stand," said Luffy, grinning. "Besides, _Merry_ is cool having a 'sibling' travel with us."

"You talk as if the ship has a mind of it's own," said Vivi.

"It does. It's really hard to find a ship that has a soul, but the _Merry_ definitely has one. Whoever had it before must have really loved this ship. I know for a fact the ship's spirit thinks of the crew as family," said Ace absently. "It's the same reason I picked the _Romance Dawn_, despite needing to remodel it instead of having one built."

The _Romance Dawn_ had been in need of some major repairs when they first got it. While the price of the ship was relatively low, the cost of _repairing_ it would have meant they could have bought a brand new one for the same price. Sabo didn't like the cost, but he put his misgivings aside and let Ace buy the ship.

His faith had been rewarded, because the _Romance Dawn_ had let them survive the New World, when other ships the same make would have been totaled in the first year. There were a few times Sabo would even swear that the tiller had moved under his hand and guided them on a safer path..._without any input from him_.

Luffy had noticed it immediately the first time he meditated on the_ Merry_, which was one of the reasons why he had opted to use the slightly smaller ship instead of the one his brother gave him.

"What kind of ship is that?" asked Usopp baffled. He wasn't the only one.

"A special ship," said Luffy, sniggering. He expertly helped Ace set it up with the ease of long practice. It was a lot more stable on the water compared to the _Dusk to Dawn_, and a bit bigger too. Then again the other ship was originally a prototype to see if he could make a hot air balloon and to help his brothers practice with their rune-work.

Seeing the curious expressions of the Straw Hat crew, Ace grinned.

"Yo Finn, you good to man the ship while I blow their minds?"

"I'm good," said Finn. He was used to traveling via air, so the novelty of flight had lost enough of it's appeal that he could stay on the ship.

Needless to say Nami was in love with the balloon ride. Being able to observe clouds up close and actually_ touch_ them was amazing for her.

_The next morning..._

Usopp was with Ace, doing a basic "check-up" of the _Merry_. Marco had once joked that Ace took his job as a doctor too seriously, because he tended to include the actual _ship_ to the list of patients.

He might skip it for the most part on the _Moby Dick_, because they had a dedicated team of ship-wrights to deal with that sort of thing (who were all too happy to give Ace tips on how to fix the _Dawn_ and sometimes help out on slow days), but he had become an unofficial expert when it came to the smaller vessels like the _Merry._

And from what he saw, the caravel had taken a bit of a beating from the Grand Line.

"Well, the patient is beaten up, but not in critical condition so far. Then again a caravel this size was never meant for the sort of weather and trials you'd get on the Grand Line," said Ace, marking off another box on his checkboard. "Our last stop should be the keel. If anything happens to that, then you're going to need another ship."

"The keel?" said Usopp.

Ace flipped to another page, which had a human skeleton on it.

"Think of the keel like a spine. If it's intact, then the nerves can travel up and down the body no problem. However if it's badly damaged, then the body becomes paralyzed or worse. It's the biggest beam that runs along the middle of the ship," explained Ace.

Ace closely examined the beam. There was a lot of wear and tear, but so far no cracks had shown up. Just to be safe, he started making a note of which runes to use to strengthen it. After all, he considered the _Merry_ as part of the Straw Hat crew, and he knew they would be utterly devestated if anything happened to it.

Overall it was in decent condition considering it was never designed to handle Paradise, much less the New World. But it could use a few repairs.

The problem was that this crew didn't have any of the needed supplies or materials to do that. Much less the capital to buy them.


	13. Chapter 13

The second Ace heard about Rain Dinners, he had to grin.

"I think we can solve a few problems at once," he said.

"What do you mean?" asked Nami.

"Your ship needs some repairs done, and your funds are too low to buy most of the needed supplies. And going with you directly to deal with Crocodile would be overkill, never mind that it implies I don't trust Luffy to handle himself in a serious fight. Which is why we should split up, at least partially."

Luffy grinned at that.

"You're going to hit that casino and rob them for everything they have in a way they can't come after you for," he guessed.

"Yup," said Ace smirking. "Naturally any winnings I get I'll use to buy the supplies to fix the ship, and this way you can go on your adventure without having to worry about someone stealing the _Merry_...like the Marines. And if you actually beat Crocodile, I _may_ split my winnings with your crew."

Nami perked up at that. She looked at Luffy.

"How good is his luck?"

"He was banned from any gambling establishments in Oyaji's territory as well as Shanks, never mind the unofficial poker night the crew held," said Luffy immediately. "Our luck tends to go from chaotic during adventures and almost godly when it comes to gambling."

"I call it the 'Midas Touch'," said Ace helpfully.

"Midas?" repeated Chopper.

"It's an old myth about a king who loved treasure so much that the gods granted him a blessing. Anything he touched would turned to gold...and I do mean _anything_. One day he accidentally touched his daughter with the hand that had been blessed and she became a gold statue. The only way to reverse the transformation was to put her under running water," explained Ace.

Luffy grimaced.

"Wasn't that one of the Greek myths you told us?"

"Yup," said Ace.

"Those guys were messed up," said Luffy.

"What do you mean 'messed up'?" asked Nami.

"There was this one story about a hero who married a princess, only to drop her for a younger woman. The princess was so distraught over what happened she killed her own kids," said Luffy grimacing.

Vivi was understandably horrified by that.

"You're forgetting the guy essentially _raped_ her. The princess in question was forced to fall in love with him due to the influence of the goddess of love because he was on a quest. As a result she murdered her own father and brother to help him, and when he found a younger woman more to his liking he essentially dumped her, despite having two children with her. Naturally the spell she was under broke at that point, and when she realized what she had done she snapped and killed her children," said Ace. "And don't get me started on the tale about the guy who fell into the ocean with wax wings."

"I don't think I want to hear any more," said Nami green. Vivi nodded emphatically at that.

"You sure? I have a ton of Greek mythology and Luffy knows most of them," said Ace grinning.

"Why wax wings? And how did that even work?" asked Usopp.

"A father and son were trapped in a tower by a king. To escape, he took the feathers left behind by the birds and some wax to create a pair of fake wings to fly away. Somehow they managed to make it work, but the son wanted to see how high he could fly and got too close to the sun. The wax melted and he fell to his death in the ocean, to his father's despair," said Ace.

"I bet your favorite story is about the immortal who brought fire to humans!" said Luffy.

"Eh, Prometheus was a good story but I always liked the cautionary tales more."

"Can...can you just stop? Please?"

"You sure?" said Luffy.

"And to think I haven't even gotten into the expliots of the god that ruled that particular pantheon, or his family!" said Ace far too cheerfully.

"Don't forget the musicals! Has the crew forgiven you for introducing them to that one musical about meat pies?" asked Luffy wickedly.

Ace cackled wickedly. The Whitebeard crew _still_ refused to eat meat pies unless everyone was accounted for, to the amusement of Pops. Sometimes Thatch sent a few of them out on errands without telling anyone to freak them out.

"What musical? On second thought, never mind," said Nami after thinking about it. She was going to have nightmares, she just knew it!

"What's a musical?" asked Chopper.

Ace patted his hat.

"A musical is a story told with a lot of singing involved," said Ace helpfully.

"I'm almost afraid to ask what musical you introduced them to that had them terrified of meat pies," said Nami.

"It wasn't the plot that disturbed them, but the way they disposed of the large number of corpses they created," said Ace.

Sanji was the first to get it.

"How would that even work? I mean how did the customers not know what they were eating?"

"The time period they were in wasn't the cleanest and you would be lucky to find a restaurant that didn't have massive health code violations. Never mind the fact that there's a very good reason pigs have been used as human analogs for years, outside of the fact burnt flesh can smell like pork," said Ace.

Nami looked like she was highly contemplating swearing off pork forever, as did Vivi.

"What was the story about?" asked Zoro. The girls shot him a glare.

"A barber was thrown into prison on false charges because the judge wanted to sleep with the man's wife. As such he went away for fifteen years before escaping, only to find out that his wife was 'dead' and his daughter had been taken in by the man who threw him into prison and raped his wife. His only thought was to get revenge and get his daughter back, and what better way to do that than to slit the man's throat while he was in for a shave? The problem was that the young man who saved him at sea basically tipped the judge off his ward was planning to run away, and the judge became furious."

"So how do meat pies come into the equation?" asked Sanji.

"The woman who owned the shop just below where he worked as a barber recognized him, and suggested the best way to deal with the bodies they created was to cook them up in her food and serve them to people, since apparently her cooking wasn't good enough and meat was hard to come by at the time."

"So how did it end?"

"He kills the judge, the old beggar woman who hovered around certain areas turned out to be his wife who had lost her mind from the poison she had consumed to kill herself only to fail, and the woman who cooked people was thrown into the oven herself," said Ace. "The daughter ran away with the sailor who saved her father's life and it's debatable if she even knew the barber was her father."

"Ugh...don't you know any _other_ stories?" complained Nami.

"I have an entire library of romantic comedies, and murder mysteries with a romantic subplot. It's just guys tend to enjoy a good horror novel every once in a while," said Ace grinning.

"You _will_ be sharing those," said Nami ominously.

Luffy wondered if he should warn Nami of Ace's habit to play pranks...like switching the covers of his books so that the contents didn't match.

The guys, save for Chopper and Usopp who didn't like scary things, all asked for horror stories. Or in the case of Luffy, more mythology.

* * *

Ace felt strong vindictive amusement as he was swiftly bleeding Crocodile's precious casino dry...without having to cheat once.

It wasn't to say he didn't know how...it was just that with his luck it wasn't truly necessary. That, and he might have been a little overboard insuring that the other poker players remained honest by basically insuring _their_ ability to cheat was heavily compromised.

It had taken three different major players being 'escorted' out by less than amused guards before the others caught the unspoken message he was sending. Play honest or else.

By the end of the day, once Luffy had drawn out the big fish (how he had gotten caught in a seastone cage Ace didn't want to know, but at least his baby brother had the sense to hide his magic from Smoker. The Marines didn't need to know Luffy was now partially immune to it.) but it ended well thanks to the fact that Luffy's crew was competent.

Ace's next move was to go get the supplies needed to repair the ship.

"You sure you'll be okay?" asked Ace.

"I'll be fine Ace-nii."

"Just remember, once you guys get back I'll start teaching your crew about Haki," said Ace.

Luffy perked up at that. Teaching CPR was one thing, since he had seen Ace do it so many times and had the special dolls to help. But Haki required someone who knew what they were doing.

And Ace, to the amusement of everyone else, was a natural teacher.

"By the way, would you mind taking Jack with you?"

"Who's Jack?" asked Vivi.

"Oi, Jack! Go with Luffy for a bit will ya?" Ace called out.

A magnificent red and gold bird flew out of a ball of fire and onto Luffy's shoulder, where it started preening his hair.

"What is _that_?" said Nami fascinated.

"Jack is Ace's familiar. He's a phoenix," said Luffy, stroking Jack's feathers with the ease of long practice. Jack trilled happily.

"Oh, and before I forget... Chopper, come here a moment," said Ace.

"What is it?" asked Chopper. The weather here was murder for his poor body.

Ace handed him a vest.

"Put this on."

Chopper swapped out his vest and put on the one Ace gave him...and his eyes went wide.

"It's... It's cold!" he said happily. He felt so much better.

"I put a special permanent charm on that vest so that it can regulate the temperature for you. As a cold-weather creature, desert islands are going to be really dangerous. The threat of heat-stroke goes up exponentially, especially with that fur of yours. After all, it wouldn't do for the crew's doctor to become sick because of the heat right?"

"Ace-nii is so awesome!" said Chopper enthusiastically.

"Wait, how did you make that?" asked Nami.

"I got pendants for the rest of you that does the same thing, and I have special canteens that hold a lot of fresh water since dehydration is one of the leading causes of death in a desert island for outsiders. I actually sold a vest like this to another crew who had a mink that came from a cold weather island."

Bepo was amusing, and he had made quick friends with Law once he realized Ace had a solution to the issue that kept making his crew member sick. Being able to talk shop with a pirate doctor put Law in a good mood for days.

That...and Ace may or may not have given Law the snail number to Sabo who was in the Revolutionaries so that he could track Donflamigo's whereabouts.

People really underestimated the value of reliable communication.

"You seriously have an awesome older brother Luffy," said Usopp, feeling the blessed relief of cold air instead of the oppressive heat.

"I am a doctor, after all. It wouldn't do for my little brother's crew to get killed because they were overheated or dehydrated. Oh, and before I forget Luffy... Crocodile is a logia user like me," said Ace. "And considering you're challenging him as a full pirate captain, don't hold back. If necessary, feel free to use 'that'."

"Got it big brother!" said Luffy, his expression determined. Unlike the goofy, loveable idiot there was a true pirate.

He hadn't spent several years with the Whitebeards learning the in's and out's of the Grand Line to die here and now.

Ace went to work on the ship, adding a few fun surprises for his baby brother to find when he got back.

* * *

_With Luffy..._

"So Luffy, how long have you known Ace?" asked Vivi.

"Ace-nii practically raised me," said Luffy. "Gramps brought me to Dawn island when I was a baby, and Ace got really mad when he found out that I was left with the bandit gang...mostly because they didn't know how to handle kids at all. He taught me how to fight and healed me up every time Gramps showed up."

"Sounds like you really love your brother," said Vivi smiling.

And it was pretty clear from the way Ace acted around Luffy that he really cared about his little brother.

"You kidding? If you got Luffy started on his brother he'd never shut up for _hours_. Though now that I've met him, I can see why," said Nami.

"Yeah, that Ace guy certainly lives up to the hype Luffy's made of him," said Zoro, impressed in spite of himself.

Normally he'd take the sort of things Luffy said about his brother with a grain of salt, but apparently his captain hadn't been exaggerating.

"Why were you clutching your left arm, Luffy?" asked Vivi.

"This is my weapon against Bon Clay. When he turned into me earlier, he didn't have anything on his left arm, right?" said Luffy.

Nami's eyes widened.

"Wait...you were wearing a longer sleeved shirt than normal when he turned into you," she said in realization.

"Everything else was in the wash," said Luffy in annoyance.

"That's right, Bon Clay's version of you didn't have anything on the left shoulder," said Zoro in realization.

"But when he turned into me, he had the same tattoo..."

"Because he knew it was there," said Luffy grinning.

He carefully slipped the bandanna on his shoulder down...to expose the mark of another pirate captain.

Vivi's eyes went wide, because she had seen that exact same mark enlarged on Ace's back once they left Drum island.

"Is that..."

"I took Oyaji's mark before I was fifteen. He was fully supportive of me being a pirate captain in my own right and said that if anything ever happened I was welcomed to come back to his crew. No matter what, I'm still considered one of Whitebeard's sons," said Luffy proudly. "I just hide it because I want to make a name in my own right without having to rely on Oyaji, and because if the Marines knew I was one of his they'd send people that the others aren't quite ready to deal with just to spite him."

Nami was grinning.

"So if we run into Bon Clay and he tries to pretend he's you, we can bust him by checking his arm."

"So what's the deal with the bird?" asked Zoro.

"Jack is probably bored, and this way Ace knows I have a special trick up my sleeves in case we need to stabilize someone in a hurry," said Luffy. "Phoenix tears have healing powers, and if you drink them they can cure any poison, toxin or venom."

"What about that haki stuff Ace mentioned?" asked Zoro.

"It's a pretty standard ability in the other half of the Grand Line," said Luffy. "There's three types, but only a select few can use the third type. The other two are known as 'Armament Haki' and 'Observation Haki'."

Unknown to Luffy, he had fallen into Ace's usual lecturing stance.

"Observation Haki allows you to see and hear a lot of things that you would otherwise miss...like Nami's ability to pick up on weather patterns before they happen in a split second. Armament Haki is something I know Zoro is going to be rather interested in...it's an ability that allows even ordinary people to be able to hit a devil fruit user, regardless of what ability they have."

Seeing he had their full attention, Luffy grinned.

"I'm so used to fighting Ace-nii that I've learned to use Armament Haki like it's second nature in order to actually hit him."

For the first time in a long time, Vivi felt the spark of hope become a conflagration.


	14. Chapter 14

Vivi was never more relieved that Luffy's brother was such a versitile doctor than after the battle. While the Straw Hats were all recovering from the fight against Crocodile (to the shock of many, it was a one-sided slaughter thanks to Luffy), the famous Pyrite D. Ace was busy working his tail off insuring that as many people survived the aftermath as possible.

Between him, Chopper, Finn and Coral, the injuries of the people caught up in the fake rebellion caused by Crocodile were treated in an efficient manner...there were a number of lives saved because Ace had opted to come in _after_ the fight was over to heal people rather than join in. Considering how drained the Straw Hats were, odds were that Ace would have been almost as tired as his brother if he had gotten involved.

In his words, sending both brothers against Crocodile would have been overkill and a sign that Ace didn't think his little brother could win. Luffy's smile when he realized Ace honestly believed he could kill Crocodile _on his own_ was practically blinding.

(Vivi would openly swear to anyone who asked that the fact Ace trusted Luffy to kill a warlord solo was the entire reason it had been a one-sided slaughter. Luffy was too busy riding on the high that his brother, who he idolized, trusted him to beat a major player to notice the poison and the injuries inflicted.)

Still, by the time Luffy finally woke up and the Marines headed their way, she was unsurprised by the fact that Ace gave her Luffy's snail number...along with with the number to their other brother Sabo.

Considering all Luffy and Ace had done for them, Vivi had no problem acting as a secret informant for the Revolutionaries. Especially after hearing what the World Government had been doing behind people's backs.

There was no way to justify the deaths of countless children because they wanted to wipe out the line of Gold Roger. Considering the atrocities commited by Crocodile with the blessing of the World Government who did nothing because he was a Warlord, Vivi refused to ignore it any longer.

Hence why Ace gave her Sabo's contact number. A royal on the side of the Revolutionaries gave them access to information that would be impossible to get otherwise.

"If you want to continue with the crew, just call the snail. I'll come to pick you up or send Jack to find you and bring you straight to them," said Ace.

With Ace around, Luffy didn't have to stay within sight of Alabasta and run the risk of the Marines coming after them. He was fast enough to snatch Vivi up in his dragon form or have Jack pick her up and deposit her on the _Merry_.

However Ace didn't think Vivi would stay with the crew. Right now her people needed a leader, and she would be casting everything aside if she chose to become a real pirate.

After everything she went through, Vivi would likely stay in Alabasta to help the island to heal from the damage done by Crocodile.

However the fact that Luffy understood what Ace meant when he explained that and still gave her the open offer to join his crew at a later date if she were ever inclined meant the world to Vivi, as it was his way of saying no matter what she would forever be one of his crew regardless of whether she was on the ship or not.

Ace made a note to deliver one of the special mirrors he was developing to Vivi once he figured out the right rune combination. Hearing someone was one thing, but being able to put a face to the voice was even better.

Especially since one needed a visual to teleport somewhere.

The three brothers had long since mastered silent teleportation, but they still needed a visual in order to use it. It was a lot less risky compared to Apparition, which Ace had never liked and had gone out of his way to find an alternative method.

(As Ace suspected, Vivi opted to remain with her kingdom. Though about two weeks later she made a tentative call to the _Merry_ via the snail Luffy had, and was greeted with enthusiasm as if she had never properly left. The relief in her voice realizing Luffy hadn't been joking when he said she was free to return to them any time was enormous.)

The reaction to the fact Nico Robin was on their ship was met with mixed results.

Luffy didn't care about her past...back in the temple she had given Cobra the antidote once Luffy had killed Crocodile and despite the trouble she gave them she had never actually killed anyone. Though she had plenty of opportunity.

"I don't trust her," said Nami flatly.

"Considering the World Government has been after her since she was seven, I would think you'd give her a break."

"What?" said Zoro.

Robin stiffened.

"Nico Robin was given a massive bounty at the tender age of seven and is one of the rare people who can claim to have survived a Buster Call. She is also the last known survivor of Ohara, an island that was once filled with scholars who were attempting to decrypt an ancient language that the World Government is dead set on remaining dead. Considering what happened, I can only assume they succeeded and that Robin learned how to read the ancient writing as well," said Ace flatly.

Luffy stiffened, for a different reason than Robin assumed when she saw his reaction.

If Luffy wanted to cut her loose, she would be in a lot of trouble since they were on open sea and she was surrounded. The Straw Hats might be stronger than they looked, but she knew there was little chance she could defeat Ace.

"So basically the World Government forced her to remain on the run for years, unable to trust anyone, because they're scared of a language? That's as stupid as the reason they've been targeting you since before you were born, Ace-nii!" said Luffy, openly affronted.

Nami looked at Robin with considerably more sympathy now. After what Arlong put her through and the way she had to work with the very people who destroyed her home and got her mother killed, it was no wonder Robin had trust issues.

"Why would the World Government be after you before you were even born?" asked Robin. The way Luffy phrased that said that the Marines had been trying to kill Ace before he ever became a pirate.

"Because they're super paranoid about the fact that the former Pirate King left a living legacy, to the point they murdered countless infants and small toddlers in an attempt to insure that his bloodline _stayed_ dead," said Ace pissed. "If not for Shitty Gramps, odds were they would have succeeded. Of course if they knew what Luffy's bloodline was, they wouldn't hesitate to send even bigger players against the crew to kill him."

"Luffy?" repeated Nami. "Why would they want to kill Luffy?"

Luffy rolled his eyes.

"My dad is Monkey D. Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionaries. And Gramps is Monkey D. Garp, the Marine hero," said Luffy. It was clear he didn't care about his lineage all that much.

Nami stared at him.

"Your _grandfather_ is the marine hero?!"

"He might be a good marine, but he's a shit grandfather. Asshole thought that leaving us with bandits was a bright idea and kept throwing us into hellish training that made no sense and would have killed normal kids. He still hasn't stopped crowing about the fact that I became a real doctor, even though he has to use my alias when he talks about me," said Ace irritably. "The jerk honestly believed forcing the bandits to raise us like unwanted extras would toughen us up enough that we could survive once the Marines knew about us."

Luffy's snickering was extra evil.

"Bet he still howls with rage every time he thinks of you coming onto his ship, after all the times you and Sabo-nii robbed it when it was in port."

Ace's smirk was just as wicked.

"People underestimate the sticky fingers of children...especially ones that can ferret out all the good shit and know how to hide it until the adults have their backs turned."

Nami had a headache. So did Sanji and Usopp.

"I guess we're lucky that massive sea king appeared and drove off the Marines, considering who was on that ship," said Nami.

Luffy started cackling. Nami glared at him.

"Oh what now?!"

"That wasn't a sea king...that was Ace-nii!" he said cackling.

Dead silence.

"What."

Surprisingly it was Robin who said that, not Nami.

Ace grinned and dove off the side of the ship to the horror of everyone else.

Only for the same sea king that had driven off the Marines...to pop it's head over the railing.

"What the hell?!" said Nami in shock. Everyone but Luffy stared dumbly at the overgrown lizard.

"Ace-nii can turn into a dragon," said Luffy as if it were obvious. "Oddly enough, when he's in that form water doesn't affect him at all."

Nami threw up her hands in frustration.

"Any _other_ surprises you'd like to spring on us at the moment?" she demanded.

Only to come face-to-face with _another_ creature where Luffy had been standing.

It was a massive bird with at least three pairs of wings, a long flowing tail, and a sharp looking beak.

Ace snickered.

"You have no idea how hard I laughed when I realized Luffy's animal form was a thunderbird," he said amused. "Though nothing is as hilarious as watching Luffy swim in that form."

"Shishishi..."

"Please tell me he can't talk in that form," said Nami, pinching her nose. And what in blazes is a thunderbird?!"

"A thunderbird is a rare creature that can create storms on demand," said Ace. "Which is ironic, because rubber is a natural insulator against lightning and electricity."

"I can talk better than Ace-nii can in dragon form. He gave up on it because the words got so mangled and just uses telepathy," said Luffy, his face wide in a wicked grin.

"I give up. Come get me when the world makes sense again!" said Nami irate.

Robin, however, focused intently on the two brothers.

"You said that when you're in that form, water has no effect on you?" she asked.

"Yeah. For some reason the magic in the transformation shields us from the effects water has on those who have eaten devil fruits," said Ace.

"I would like to say magic doesn't exist, except I just saw Luffy turn into a giant six-winged bird," said Zoro.

"People either lost the ability or lost the knowledge required to train it," said Ace shrugging. "Which reminds me, I need to get you all started on basic Haki training soon."

"This magic... does it have any other applications?"

Ace's instincts told him something else was up.

"Let me guess. You think Pluton or the ancient language have something to do with the lost art of magic?"

Robin nodded.

"I've never bothered to get close to the poneglyphs, so I have no idea what sort of language is written on them. However I do know a wide array of Runes, though Luffy is still an intermediate at reading them, much less applying them. Can you write any samples of the language on them?" asked Ace.

Robin nodded.

"Do you have paper and something to write with?" she asked.

Ace produced it at once from out of nowhere. She quickly scribbled a few sentence in the ancient language.

Ace took one look at it and frowned.

"Well it's not Latin, Sanskrit, Norse, Egyptian or Arabic..." he said. "In fact if I didn't know any better I'd swear this looks like the druidic language of the Celts when used by the Elders when imparting important messages to only the highest ranking member of the clan. It fell out of favor when Christianity really took off and the old ways slowly gave way to a more 'civilized' era."

Ace examined the runes from different angles.

"By any chance, did you write 'Never tickle a sleeping dragon'?" he asked oddly.

Robin stiffened. She had thought he would never notice the little joke she had written that she had seen on the Ohara ponegylph before the Buster Call. She had always found it amusing.

"You... you can read this?"

Ace sighed.

"I knew this looked familiar. Why did you pick this particular phrase anyway?"

"It was a little joke that was on the poneglyph in Ohara," said Robin.

Ace eyed her a moment, as a sneaking suspicion cross his mind. If he was right, then there was a chance the poneglyphs were really remnants of something else.

He took out a stick, roughly a foot in length and polished. He handed it to Robin.

"Try flicking that while holding it," he said.

Luffy watched with curiosity as Robin humored him. She made a little flicking motion with the stick...only to set a barrel three feet away on fire.

Luffy was on her in seconds, his grin even bigger than before.

"Ace, does this mean...?"

Robin stared at the stick in her hand in shock.

"It looks like Robin might be a witch. And if I'm right, then Pluton might be the remnants of a society that I thought was behind me," said Ace. "We better check the rest of your crew to see if they have the same ability."

Out of the crew, only Zoro couldn't create any odd reactions with the stick. Though from what Ace could tell when he examined the swordsman, it was most likely because Zoro was a squib. He had magic in his blood, he was just unable to use it normally.

Ace sighed. It looked like they were going to have a busy month or two. Having a crew that could use magic would provide a major boon to Luffy down the road.

Especially Chopper. Having a trained healer on his crew would only benefit them long term.

"By the way, Ace-nii, I found this weird egg in the desert when I got split up from the others," said Luffy.

Luffy knew how valuable familiars were, and something about the egg called to him.

Ace took one look at it and laughed.

"You are truly one of the blessed, little brother, to find an unhatched phoenix egg during an adventure. Looks like Jack is going to have a little brother or sister!"

Luffy perked up at that.

Ace sat his little brother down and coached him in how to hatch the egg so that the animal within would be bonded to his little brother from birth.

What emerged from the egg was a female phoenix, who Luffy immediately named Hedwig, after the owl that Ace had loved so much in his past life. It was small now, but in a few months it would grow just as quickly as Jack did. And since they weren't from the same nest, it meant the brothers now had a mating pair of magical birds.


	15. Chapter 15

If someone had told Robin that she might find a living clue to the lost century in her lifetime, she would have laughed at you in the face.

However she couldn't deny the evidence of the mysterious power that the scholars had called "Pluton" staring at her in the face. Or the fact that she apparently had it as well.

Ace not only had memories of a past life, but from everything suggested he had _lived_ at the tail end of the lost century. Especially the way he openly corrected her use of the ancient language so that it flowed better. Even she couldn't _speak_ the language as fluently as he did. Though according to him the reason the scholars of Ohara had such trouble reading the thing was because it required a certain level of magic in the body.

Seeing actual books of ancient languages she didn't recognize excited her. Ace didn't mind teaching her how to read _and_ speak the languages, and Luffy was a testament to his skill as a teacher.

Robin couldn't keep the excitement off her face at the thought of having someone teach her to read languages she had seen before but had never been able to comprehend. She had a photographic memory, so she had hopes Ace could help her translate some of the ruins she had seen over the years.

The day Ace brought out something he called a 'pensieve', Robin dragged him to one of the unused rooms in the_ Merry_.

She had zero complaints about his stamina or creativity. Though the second Nami caught on what happened, she promptly dragged Robin away for some much needed girl talk.

_With the guys..._

"You know I do believe you're the first guy on the here who's actually slept with a woman on the ship," commented Zoro. It hadn't taken them more than ten minutes to figure out what happened.

Ace pinched his nose.

"Please tell me you're exaggerating."

"The only indication I've seen that Luffy even knows what sex is happens whenever he sees Nami."

"Dammit... I knew my brother was dense but this is ridiculous. I didn't try to shelter him _that_ much outside of warning him about communicable diseases," said Ace exasperated.

Yes, he was a mother hen sometimes, but he wouldn't try to keep his little brother from developing a sex life! Outside of giving him the talk and a warning about certain diseases that came from sleeping around too much without precautions he didn't forbid his brother from getting a girlfriend.

From the looks of things, Luffy's tunnel vision about becoming the Pirate King had come to bite Ace in the ass.

Ace looked at the other two men.

"Alright, has Luffy shown _any_ sign of being interested in girls...or guys...on this crew?"

"Outside of a nosebleed when he saw Nami naked...even if the first time was when Bon Clay turned into her, not really," said Zoro.

"Considering what I heard about how Nami became a permanent member of the crew, I have a feeling she wouldn't be against it. And Luffy would know better than to let personal feelings get in the way of running the crew. He's seen how a relationship can work between crewmates without causing internal strife," said Ace tiredly.

He was not letting Luffy become a thirty-year-old virgin because of tunnel vision.

Nami, unsurprisingly, had been fine with the idea of making the first move. Apparently she had picked up the fact Luffy was incredibly dense regarding the subject but hadn't known if anyone had talked to him about it.

(On the plus side, Luffy's antics seemed to mellow out a bit. They loved their captain, but even the crew could admit he tended to get on their nerves sometimes.)

* * *

_A week later..._

Ace's expression as they drew closer to Jaya could only be described as 'stormy'.

He could sense that they were drawing close to that bastard Blackbeard.

Seeing a galleon fall from the sky, that expression went from stormy to excited.

"I completely forgot! Jaya is close to one of the access points to Skypiea!"

Luffy's expression became like a kid in a candy store with an unlimited credit card.

"You mean that island where you can get dials? That Skypiea?!"

"What's Skypiea?" asked Nami.

"There's a series of sky islands that float on super dense clouds in the sky. They're a total pain in the ass to get to if you can't fly, and a lot of the weaker pirates doubt they exist. But there's proof in the presence of special items called dials! They're super hard to get on the Blue Sea, but they're pretty common on the Sky Islands and they tend to trade rather favorably to those who make it up there."

"How favorably?" asked Nami.

"Very favorably. Stuff like actual dirt goes like crazy up there... I've traded a enough soil for someone to start a small planted garden and I got a ton of local fruit and things from them," said Ace. "Only issue is actually finding an access point or the special cloud they tend to be on. I completely forgot the route you were taking would lead to one of the more easily accessed ones."

"Wait...you've_ been_ up there?" said Nami.

Ace smirked.

"I am a dragon, after all. Flying that high isn't an issue... not to mention that the hot air balloons I have can go that high with no problem, so long as you can handle the fact that the air gets thinner. It's no different than being on the top of a really high mountain," said Ace.

"We are so going there," said Luffy.

Nami looked at her log pose...and her eyes widened.

"The pose...it's pointing upward!"

Ace grinned.

"Seems like your luck is holding out again, little brother! Looks like Skypiea is in the area at the moment!"

Luffy was already eager to go see it.

* * *

Luffy was a surprisingly good actor when he wanted to be. He kept his expression neutral, acting as though he hadn't heard what Teach did to Thatch as the odorous man greeted him like an old friend.

He didn't change his expression once, even as Ace calmly walked up behind Teach...and drew his gun.

"Did you really think I wouldn't track your sorry ass down after what you did?" said Ace, his voice stone cold.

Dead silence. Any pirate within seven feet of the obviously pissed off Whitebeard pirate backed away. Not even that jackass Bellamy was stupid enough to attract Ace's attention.

Teach looked pissed too.

"You...how did you swap out that devil fruit?"

Ace's eyes were cold.

"Tricking you was easy. Thatch wanted to see if anyone was stupid enough to fall for it and let me borrow it for a few weeks to play around with, since it only takes a partial bite out of a devil fruit to impart the powers. Not like anyone would know the difference between a rotten fruit that was altered to look like the real thing and the actual fruit, considering no one would be stupid enough to eat those things twice."

Anyone who had eaten a Devil Fruit would tell you...those things tasted indescribably bad. So much so that no one sane would eat them twice, even if they had no idea that doing so would kill you.

Blackbeard looked murderous.

"You really think you can take me, brat?"

Ace chuckled darkly.

"You really think I was stupid enough to show _everything_ I could do around a man my little brother instinctively knew was trouble? I knew you weren't to be trusted with the way Luffy acted around you without knowing why."

Ace cocked his gun back.

"And I despise traitors who think nothing of murdering a fellow crew member they had been friends with for years, all for power. Of course the fact you're actively assisting the Marines in trying to bring the Whitebeards down just gave me even more incentive to kill you and annihilate your entire crew."

Luffy, by this point, was going to check on his crew to insure they had restocked any supplies they needed. As a captain of his own crew, he knew that he couldn't interfere directly unless something happened to Ace.

Any _real_ captain would know better than to get involved with an internal dispute like this.

Teach smirked and Ace knew the bastard had likely activated his armament Haki already.

Which was why he wasn't going to waste his ammo on this trash. The gun was just a distraction to hide the fact his wand was behind his back.

Teach should have paid more attention to the stick and not the gun. Because what Ace did next had him in agony.

"_Crucio!"_

A jet of red light slammed into Teach, causing him to scream like the damned. Every nerve ending was on fire, feeling as if Ace was directly electrocuting his nerves.

The pirates around them gave Ace an even wider circle, their eyes wide.

When Ace finally released Teach, the man was highly shaken by the experience.

Ace grabbed Teach's hair and hauled him up, displaying an almost inhuman amount of strength as Teach wasn't exactly what you would call _light_.

"See I take particular offense to traitors who think nothing of killing their friends and family over something as stupid as power. And you happened to almost fatally wound someone I care about. Fortunately your particular bounty is still good even if you're already dead when delivered," said Ace, his smile full of cold malice and a darkness that terrified anyone who saw it. "So when you see whatever deity runs the afterlife, tell them that I send my best regards."

The next light that hit Teach caused him to go limp. It was clear to anyone who looked at him that he was _dead_. No one was sure how Ace had done it, and they were wisely too terrified to ask someone who was clearly pissed off.

On the plus side, Ace could claim the bounty for Teach's dead carcass without worry. After all, Doctor Pyrite was a neutral who didn't care at all about who he treated. If he just _happened_ to deliver Teach and the man's crew to a Marine base for the bounty, well, clearly they had done something to piss him off. Not like the Marines were going to question why he killed a pirate with a bounty.

(He only managed to claim two others from Teach's crew, as the others wisely got the hell out of dodge once they found out their captain was dead. On the plus side, Ace's reputation went up as someone you didn't want to mess with.)

* * *

_On the other side of Jaya..._

Ace had a rather contemplative expression on his face, hearing about Nolan. He had heard the story of course, but a thought occurred to him considering they hadn't found _any_ evidence of the missing city despite diving for years.

"Isn't the Knockback stream around this area?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's due sometime tomorrow. Why?" asked Cricket.

"Has the stream ever come close to the island itself?"

"It's gotten within a mile or so once," said Cricket.

"Is it possible that the missing city your ancestor saw was sent up to Skypiea? I mean that particular Sky Island does tend visit this general area with some regularity and it _is_ a _cloud_ based island... what if the Knockback Stream hit the missing half of Jaya and it was sent up into the Sky?" said Ace.

"You... you actually believe in Sky Island?" said Cricket staring at him.

"Believe in it? I've _been_ there a few times! They call us Blue Sea dwellers and they have wings on their back. I've traded planters of dirt for large amounts of food from them before," said Ace. "I know there's a set route to visit them, but it's such a monumental pain in the ass to get up there."

Seeing hope fill Cricket's face, Ace grinned.

"Hell, if we know where the place is I could easily take you up to see it yourself," said Ace. "It wouldn't be that hard to rig up the _Road to Dawn_ and fly up there, even if the air is thinner."

Seeing the hope in Cricket's eyes and the two Saruyama brothers, Ace grinned.

"Far be it from me to help a man prove everyone wrong after yers of ridicule," said Ace. "Besides, if anyone deserves to see that city after years of your family being called a liar, it's you."

Of course this meant Ace wasn't planning to go up with Luffy. He had killed Blackbeard and if he was going to take the other crews up to Skypiea that would mean multiple trips with the _Road to Dawn_. Besides, he had installed a 'special' door on the ship that would allow him to continue having a relationship with Robin. It took anyone who went through it to straight to whatever ship Ace was on at the time so long as the doorway could fit.

Luffy didn't mind. As much as he loved having Ace around, he always felt like he should answer to his brother first rather than make the decisions himself. Besides, who was he to deny someone an adventure?

Ace chuckled.

"Go have fun Luffy. Just remember to call regularly, okay little brother?"

Luffy nodded. Unlike last time, he could part with his brother without making a complete fool of himself.

Because this time, he was leaving wit the knowledge Ace had acknowledged him as a true pirate captain, rather than just as his little brother.

Though this time he left Robin and Luffy with a special key that would bring them to wherever Ace was...and back, once they were put into a door with a lock. For Luffy it was a safety net in case Chopper or Finn weren't enough, but for Robin it was more along the lines of he found her highly attractive and didn't mind letting her pick his brain for information regarding the lost era. She found him just as attractive if the fact he kept waking up with her in his bed was any indication.

It had been a while since he had a girlfriend.


	16. Chapter 16

Ace had to grin when he saw Luffy's shadow overlap on the clouds as the bell rang clearly from the sky. He made sure to take a few pictures to share with everyone.

"It'll take me a few trips to get everyone up there, but I have the feeling quite a few people are going to be happy to met Noland's descedant when we reach Skypiea."

Cricket had always believed in Sky Island, but had never thought he would one day visit it without facing several life or death trials. After seeing the _Road to Dawn_, excitement built up in his heart.

The two Saruyama brothers would be joining them since he needed to make a few trips in order to carry their ships with them. The _Road to Dawn_ wasn't big enough for their entire crew and it would only take a few minutes to deliver the ships.

Ace grinned as the balloon easily carried them up past the cloud line and into the special cloud. Thanks to his powers, he could direct his balloon anywhere he liked while maintaining height.

Cricket's eyes overflowed with emotion as he got his first look at Skypiea. It looked a little worse for wear, but the fact remained that there was no denying the Sky Island existed.

"I had a feeling this would happen. That idiot always seems to find trouble," said Ace amused.

He sailed the ship towards the only area that had people on it, and to his amusement, Luffy was still there.

"Oi! Have you seen an idiot with a straw hat that eats way too much and wears a red vest?" Ace called out.

The people on the beach looked at each other.

"You know the guy who saved us?" said one man with tribal markings.

"He's my little brother. I was just curious if he made it up here or not," said Ace.

"They're still sleeping or exploring," another man replied.

"Figures."

"Is this...is this Jaya?" asked Cricket.

"Who are you?" asked the first man.

"This is Monteblanc Cricket, descendant of Monteblanc Noland."

"Noland?! Did you just say Noland?!" he asked, wide eyed.

"Someone go get the leader!" shouted another.

If Cricket was overwhelmed with finally seeing the great city his ancestor had, it was nothing compared to meeting the descendent of the same man who had greeted Noland. Several centuries after Noland was chased off Jaya for helping the natives, their descendants had finally resolved the misunderstanding.

Apparently the broken half of Jaya really _had_ been sent up into the sky by the Knock-Up stream.

A few more trips had the rest of the Saruyama Alliance in the Sky, along with their ships. Once Ace did a bit of trading, the locals gave their word to see Cricket and the two ships back to the Blue Sea safely.

Ace, on the other hand, was checking on the _Merry_. That sort of trip could be hell on a ship.

What he found had him frowning.

"Hey! Who's there?" demanded Usopp...before he recognized Ace. "How did you get up here?"

"Hot air balloon. Cricket deserves to see El Dorado as much as anyone else," said Ace absently. "Besides, I wanted to make sure you all made it up here safely before heading back to the _Moby Dick_."

"How's the _Merry_?"

"It looks okay, but I think you need to give the poor ship a break, at least until you find a shipwright. Did someone attack the ship directly while you were up here?"

"Yeah, some jerk tried to burn it down."

"I suggest having Luffy talk with _Merry_ to see if it wants to keep going or take a little break until it can be fixed up in Water Seven. If he decides to bring out the _Romance Dawn_, I can fix it so that the _Merry_ rests in a similar bottle until later."

"We aren't getting rid of the_ Merry_!" said Usopp angrily.

Ace fixed a hard stare on the other man.

"I'm not suggesting you get rid of it. I'm saying that even a ship had a life span and this model was fairly old to begin with. It's a miracle it's survived this far into the Grand Line without major damages. However there's nothing that says you can't store the _Merry_ and use it for quick supply runs once the crew gets a bit bigger. Better to delegate the ship to a minor role than to have it go to it's final rest," said Ace flatly.

Usopp deflated.

"Do we really have to?"

"Usopp, I understand your love for the ship. So does the _Merry_. However even love isn't enough to undo all the wear and tear on a ship and eventually the crew will grow too big for the _Merry_. Besides, the _Romance_ _Dawn _has a much bigger room for treasure. If you bring enough of it from here to the Blue Sea you might be able to fix the _Merry_ up good as new."

Usopp was wavering, and eventually relented to the idea of switching the ships for a bit. He could live with the fact that the _Merry_ wouldn't be given up for good, and could still be used for supply runs.

Ace made a note to tell Luffy that he should probably leave the stand with the _Merry_ in Usopp's room so he could personally reassure himself that the ship was fine.

Usopp likely had a close relationship with the person who gave

them the _Merry Go_ in the first place.

Everyone watched with avid fascination as Luffy uncorked the odd bottle he took from his room. There was a sort of reverse vacuum as something was sucked _out_ of the bottle and onto the cloud-sea in front of him.

When it was over, a ship at least half-a-size bigger than the _Merry Go_ was sitting calmly.

"How...?!" said Nami in shock, her eyes wide.

"Magic. And a lot of blown up bottles and sacrificial row boats," said Ace. "I had to specially make the bottle so that it would release the _Romance Dawn_ and still be possible to use again later."

All Luffy had to do was activate the runes and it would be sucked back into the bottle.

Ace then produced a second bottle.

"Lu, this is for the _Merry Go_. I think Usopp would be a good caretaker for it until you can get her fixed up to be the official supply run ship," said Ace.

Luffy's eyes lit up with what Ace wasn't saying.

"Supply runs like fishing trips, right?" said Luffy cheerfully.

"Yup."

Luffy handed the bottle to Usopp, who clutched it like a precious treasure.

The sniper quickly painted the Straw Hat's flag onto the main sails, while Zoro ran up their old one onto the mast.

Nami was already salivating because they could fit twice the amount of treasure onto the _Romance Dawn_ and the navigator room was fully stocked with quality supplies.

Ace waved them off before calling Jack to take him back to the _Moby Dick_. He had completed his mission and he just wanted to crash in his own room.

* * *

_With Luffy and the others..._

Luffy was already grinning like mad as they crashed back onto the Blue Sea.

The crew was already examining the ship that Luffy had been keeping in storage since the beginning of their journey.

Chopper and Finn had made themselves at home in the large medical bay, with Finn reclaiming his usual spot.

Sanji was already in love with the kitchen, which was not only fully stocked but had brand new equipment and perfectly sterilized surfaces along with properly sharpened knives. There were even speciality dishes that were a pain to track down.

Zoro had gravitated to the exercise room...and had already found the special weights that made his own look like they were child's toys. They adjusted themselves to whatever the user wanted. There was even an armory that was half-stocked with weapons. There were a few swords there that had his interest that he wanted to look at later.

Robin found the library and hadn't been seen since. Then again, most of the library on the _Dawn_ were merely copies of the ones Ace had in his pocket dimension.

(Luffy had already picked up a few of his old favorites to re-read again.)

Usopp was finding the best place to put the stand for the _Merry. _While he hated the fact they had to switch ships, he was happy they didn't have to give up the _Merry Go_ forever. He could live with it being a supply run ship, which included fishing for more food. After all, Luffy was a black hole.

_With Ace..._

"How did it go?"

"Doctor Pyrite is now the proud owner of Blackbeard's bounty and two others," said Ace flatly. "On an unrelated note, Luffy is doing good and I have a picture of his current crew."

"Did he suffer?" asked Whitebeard.

"I weakened him before I used a one-hit kill technique. As far as I know, he went quickly," said Ace. "I do not tolerate traitors, especially snakes like Blackbeard. He's the sort of bastard who will only become more dangerous the longer he's left unchecked."

Whitebeard looked tired. He was angry Teach had nearly killed Thatch and betrayed him like this, and resigned at the fact Ace had essentially executed him without hesitation.

"Are you okay?" asked Marco.

Ace sighed.

"Just give me a week to center myself back on the ship and the crew that doesn't involve any killing. I should be fine. It's not the first time I've executed a dangerous traitor and unfortunately I doubt it will be the last."

"Take whatever time you need," said Whitebeard.

Ace wouldn't be back to normal for a least a week, but spending all that time with Luffy helped a lot.

* * *

Usopp was unhappy, but at least the prognosis of the _Merry Go_ wasn't as bad as it could have been. Ace hadn't been joking that if they had kept using the ship, odds were that it wouldn't have lasted much longer. And despite his enthusiasm, Usopp wasn't a trained shipwright.

At least they could still use the _Merry Go_ as a supply boat, which was better than nothing.

The more worrying thing was that Robin was missing and the Straw Hat crew was being implicated in an attack on the Mayor.

Before the crew could attack whoever attempted to strip down the _Romance Dawn_, Luffy stopped them.

"Don't bother. Anyone stupid enough to attack a ship Ace personally customized is going to be outed pretty quick anyway. Besides, Ace is such a paranoid bastard that they're going to be regretting it pretty soon," said Luffy confidently. "No one outdoes Ace when it comes to prank wards from hell."

"Prank wards?" repeated Nami.

Luffy's expression was a tad odd...for him anyway.

"Let's just say that the Whitebeards learned_ very_ quickly not to instigate a prank war against him. There were entire sections of the _Moby Dick _declared off-limits for two full weeks last time."

"...How big is that ship again?" asked Nami faintly.

"The _Moby Dick_ is a massive ship and it's part of a trio," said Luffy confidently. "I should know since Ace had me measure the dimensions of the ship for better prank placement and finding the best spots for a surprise attack using silly string and other items."

His grin was wicked when he said that.

"I had a lot of fun during Ace's 'Constant Vigilance' surprise attacks. Marco squawked really loud the last time we nailed him with a water balloon filled with whip cream."

"Please tell me you aren't going to pull that on us later," said Nami, eyes wide.

"Not yet. Not until everyone gets up to speed on Observation Haki, so I can get you all using it instinctively. Nothing inspires people to learn how to master it than surprise attacks and minor embarrassment from having things like syrup dropped on them at random!" said Luffy.

As one, Zoro, Sanji and Usopp all looked at Nami.

"When we start Observation Haki you're going to have to step up," said Zoro flatly.

Nami shuddered.

"Agreed," she said. If sleeping with the captain kept Luffy from getting bored and starting up something like _that_ on them, then she'd happily do it. Besides, once he got into the swing of things Luffy was a surprisingly skilled lover with a ton of stamina that she was going to put to good use.

By the time they finally finished Nami was ready to sleep for two days straight.

Nami and the others found out the hard way what Luffy meant about the idiots regretting it when they saw what happened to them.

"Thank the gods Ace is on our side," said Nami, eyes wide.

There were three chickens and two grown men in bright pink ballerina costumes. The chicken's skin was a bright flourescent blue and the pink ballerinas could only speak in sonnets...it was pretty clear they were terrible at it.

"Just think, it would have been ten times worse if they were attacking the ship with intent to kill or harm those on board," said Luffy. "This is pretty low-level compared to what he could have done."


End file.
